The Tenth Shadow
by JLCHailstorm71
Summary: A prominent knight of the organization known only as the Covenant has been sent to Japan to join the nine individuals who performed the Sachiko Ever After ritual and were pulled into the hell known as Heavenly Host Elementary. With his unique fighting skills and supernatural powers, can this mysterious warrior change the fate of the Nine? All pairings, Seiko x OC
1. Chapter 1: Premonition

Welcome to my first entry. I will be updating this story whenever my schedule allows me to, so sit back and enjoy the ride.

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS ARE OWNED BY TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**MY ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, IS OWNED BY ME.**_

**Author's Note: **This chapter was completely redone, because the previous version, quite frankly, sucked. ;(

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_**CHAPTER 1: PREMONITION**_

There exists an organization, deep within the Presidio in the heart of San Francisco, that is said to house the best warriors in the world, warriors imbued with supernatural powers. An organization known as** the Covenant**.

Among these warriors, known as the **Knights of the Covenant**, is a young man known only as Packer, considered by his peers as the best Knight of the Covenant. He never knew who his parents were, as he was orphaned as a child. After many orphanages took him in, he was eventually taken in by the Covenant at a young age when it was discovered he possessed supernatural powers, which wasn't so unusual for the Covenant. What was unusual was the fact that the young boy seemed to be able to wield several different elements. A majority of the Knights each had one element they specialized in, but Packer was able to wield the powers of fire, ice, lightning, wind, and light, which no other Knight could do.

As he grew older, he would develop these abilities into powerful offensive attacks, such as his fire-based **Immolation, Pyro Punch **and **Sacred Fire**, his ice-based **Ice Spreader, Zero Punch **and **Ice Beam**, and his lightning-based **Thunderbolt, Thunderpunch **and **Astraea Lightning**. He could also combine certain elements to perform devastating combo attacks. However, there was a catch. Packer's supernatural powers draw from a finite pool of mana stored within his body. If he uses his powers too much and exhausts his mana, he will begin to suffer from fatigue, as his powers would then have to draw from his own life force, forcing Packer to use his powers sparingly. To compensate for this, Packer would study various forms of martial arts, becoming a master of Shaolin Fist and Praying Mantis Kung Fu.

He also mastered two weapon arts: the throwing knives and the katana. Hidden within Packer's uniform were sets of throwing knives made of tempered glass. Each knife was imbued with a spell, with different effects ranging from explosions to blinding light. His katana, a diamond-bladed sword he forged himself, was imbued with the power of thunder and lightning, and he gave it the name **Shiden.**

Packer also developed defensive supernatural abilities, such as his wind-based **Vortex Shield**, which surrounds him in a tornado, blocking all incoming projectiles. He also developed what he calls the **Shining Sprint**, which combined the elements of wind and light to allow him to run at super speed, but it is a massive drain on his mana reserves. As a result, he only used the Shining Sprint for emergencies.

However, Packer's strongest and most developed element was light, from which he developed some of his strongest attacks, such as the **Aurora Punch, Angel Spark, **and what he considers his most powerful attack, the **Shining Helix**.

Packer also possessed a rare ability unrelated to his elemental powers. He had the ability to see flashes of the future, usually dangerous, life-threatening events moments before they took place. He dubbed this ability **Future Sight**, and considers this one of his most useful attributes. However, there were two main drawbacks to his Future Sight ability. He had no control over when it activated, usually when he least expects it, and usually a few seconds before the event actually occurred, although there were exceptions to this. Secondly, when he came out of Future Sight, it would leave him disoriented for a few seconds, giving opponents a chance to counter-attack.

In due time, Packer used these abilities to rise up through the ranks of the Covenant, eventually becoming an Elite Knight and its most prominent member by the age of seventeen. It was also around this time that his Future Sight ability developed an unexpected secondary effect, one that would lead Packer to his most dangerous mission to date.

It was a rainy night in early August, when Packer had a very lucid dream, or so he thought. In this so-called dream, he witnessed a group of people, what he assumed to be Japanese high school students, become trapped in what appeared to be a rundown elementary school. There were nine people in all: seven high-schoolers, a junior high student, and a teacher's assistant. He watched as most of the group met with violent, gruesome deaths. In the end, only two students managed to escape to school, but had suffered severe trauma from the excursion.

After experiencing this dream several times over, he learned that the reason the people in his dream, which he dubbed "the Nine", were sent to the hellacious school was because they had failed some kind of ritual, but the details were still kind of vague. Eventually, he would bring up the matter to the head of the Knights of the Covenant, High Master Jericho. It was then he learned the true nature of his dreams.

According to Jericho, he was not experiencing dreams, like he first thought, but were in fact premonitions of the future, stemming from his Future Sight ability. Packer relayed that he also knew the name of the school that the Nine had been sent to after piecing together various portions of his dreams. Known as Heavenly Host Elementary, it was torn down several decades ago after many unfortunate accidents occurred there. Jericho also informed Packer that if the events he had been dreaming of were left unchecked, it could cause irreparable damage to the space-time continuum. Packer's mission was to get **all the members of the Nine out alive.**

In order to infiltrate the group, Packer would be sent to Japan under the guise of an American transfer student. Working in Packer's favor was the fact that he was able to speak almost perfect Japanese, and he had been studying Japanese culture since he was a kid. Jericho had an apartment set up in Tokyo, near where the Nine attended school at. They learned they were enrolled at a school known as Kisaragi Academy, and that is where Packer's search would begin. He was under orders to remain there until the mission was completed, since they had no idea when the actual event would occur, but Packer knew it was some time in the next several months. He gathered his equipment and whatever else he needed and headed for the airport, bound for Tokyo, Japan.

Little did he know what he was about to face in the near future…

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**Author's Note: **I decided to redo the first chapter, because after reading it several times, I came to the conclusion that I really didn't like the way it turned out, and it made my OC seem a little too perfect, with a few holes in his background. Hopefully, this clears up some of the convolution and makes my character a little bit less of a "Gary Stu" as it seems, which I found to be a little insulting, TBH. :/

Anyway, hopefully this revision makes the opening chapter better than the previous attempt. ;)


	2. Chapter 2: The Arrival

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

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_**CHAPTER 2: THE ARRIVAL**_

It was 11:30 A.M. in Tokyo, Japan. A young man, seventeen years of age, stepped out of the plane that had landed at Tokyo International Airport. He wore a dark green jacket, black pants, and green shoes with white trim. He had emerald green hair that matched his eyes, with a chinstrap beard of the same color. It had been a long flight from San Francisco, but Packer didn't seem to mind. After all, studying Japanese history was one of his favorite pastimes, and he was now going to get to experience it for himself. Of course, he hadn't forgotten why he was here in the first place. Three weeks prior to his arrival in Japan, Packer began having mind numbing nightmares about a group of nine people who were sent to a place called Heavenly Host Elementary, and how they were met with gruesome ends. In the end, only two of the original nine made it out of Heavenly Host alive, but were forever traumatized by the events that took place in that evil school.

Packer eventually informed his superiors about his so-called nightmares, only to find out that they were in fact premonitions, stemming from his Future Sight ability. He also learned from his superiors that if these events were left unchecked, it could cause irreparable damage to the space-time continuum.

Packer shifted the backpack on his shoulder, and walked out of the airport. The Covenant had arranged for a taxi to wait for him at the airport to take him to his apartment, which would be within walking distance of the school he would be enrolling in, Kisaragi Academy.

**"It'd be nice if I could've come here for something other than official business…" **Packer said to himself. **"But I'll have the chance to enjoy myself in due time. For now, I need to get set up at my new home, and prepare myself for tomorrow."** Ironically, tomorrow was the first day of the new school year, so enrolling wouldn't be as awkward as it would've been if it had been midway through the year. One small problem he might encounter was the fact that he was an American student enrolling in a Japanese school, but fortunately, he spoke almost perfect Japanese, another trait he gained from his fascination of Japanese culture.

The taxi stopped in front of his new apartment. Packer got out his wallet to pay the driver for the ride.

**"No worries, sir," **the driver said. **"Your organization has already covered the bill for your ride here." **Packer smiled. He could always count on the Covenant to take care of him.

**"Thanks for the lift," **he said.

**"No problem. You take care of yourself, now," **the driver replied. Packer nodded, retrieved his belongings from the trunk of the taxi, and walked up the stairs to his new apartment.

* * *

Packer opened up his laptop. He took a moment to think about what he should write in his report to the Covenant, and then began typing. It was going to be a recurring theme every Sunday until the mission was complete. He finished his report and clicked "send". Satisfied, he reached over and took hold of his katana sword, sitting comfortably in its sheath. He slid the sword out and examined the blade. A bit of electricity discharged from the blade as he ran his hand across it.

**"Shiden, my trusty sword…," **he whispered, **"I might have to rely on you a little bit more than usual this time around. I don't know what exactly it is I'm gonna be facing, but whatever it is, I'll be ready." **

Packer sheathed his sword and looked back at the laptop. On it were his instructions from his superiors, as well as the names of the individuals he was searching for, "the Nine" as he now calls them.

"**Yui Shishido, Yuka and Satoshi Mochida, Naomi Nakashima, Yoshiki Kishinuma, Ayumi Shinozaki, Mayu Suzumoto, Sakutaro Morishige, and Seiko Shinohara," **he said to himself, **"If only I knew who you all looked like, it would certainly make my search a helluva lot easier."**

He closed the laptop and ran a hand through his emerald green hair with a sigh. **"But I'll probably run into them tomorrow, so it's not really a big deal. But I can't help but wonder what makes these nine so important, and besides, why would they perform such a dangerous ritual anyway? None of this makes any sense."**

He looked out his window at the sun setting on the horizon. **"But I'm sure the pieces will begin to fall into place as time goes on. For now, I'll just focus on getting integrated into my new school, and I'll go from there."**

He reached over and grabbed the remote to the T.V. He turned it on and began channel surfing. _'It's a good thing I understand Japanese, otherwise I'd never be able to watch anything on Japanese T.V.,'_ he thought silently to himself. _'Of course, some of these shows are weird as hell anyways, so it hardly makes a difference.'_ He chuckled. _'I wonder what the nine are like. Hopefully, they're friendly, otherwise this mission's gonna be a lot more complicated than I want it to be. If we're gonna survive this ordeal, we're gonna need to work together.'_

He frowned as he thought back to his conversation with his superiors. He had suggested preventing the Nine from even performing the ritual in the first place, but he was told that it was an impossibility, due to the fact that they probably wouldn't believe his story that Heavenly Host was real, and even if they did believe it, preventing the ritual from taking place would also damage the fabric of the space-time continuum. He had to allow and even participate in the ritual, but once they were all inside Heavenly Host, everything was fair game.

Packer shook his head. **"I should've known that nothing is ever that easy. But why would I need to perform the ritual as well? What is the purpose of it?" **It was clear that Packer had more questions than answers at this point, and it was beginning to frustrate him a little. _'I need to relax. No use in getting frustrated over something that won't happen for some time, anyways.' _He continued to channel surf until he eventually drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Packer jerked from his sleep, sweating like a race horse. He looked over at the clock. _'5:53. It's about time for me to get ready for school,' _he thought. He rubbed his eyes and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He knew why he was shaken from his sleep. He'd had another one of his nightmarish premonitions.

**"These damn nightmares are getting worse with each passing day," **he muttered to himself. He recalled one scene vividly, where he was standing in the middle of a brightly lit classroom. In front of him, on their knees, were two girls. Each was looking down at the same spot on the ground in front of them. Packer couldn't quite make out what their faces looked like, but he could see they had tears in their eyes. Each of them was holding an arm of what seemed to be a boy, but Packer wasn't exactly sure. What he could see was that each arm had been severed from its body, but the rest of the boy was nowhere to be found. After what seemed like an eternity of staring at the empty space where the boy had apparently once been, the girls screamed, which woke Packer from his sleep.

**"That last scene in my nightmare… it seems to have happened after they had escaped from Heavenly Host, but why was the other person killed? Did something happen in the transition or something? Man, this shit is getting weirder by the second. Hopefully, I can get a sense of who I'm looking for today."**

After shaking the cobwebs from his head, he headed into the restroom to take a shower. Today was his first day at Kisaragi Academy, and he wanted to make sure he gave a good first impression.

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**Author's Note**: I decided to emulate GhastlyRevenant's habit of bolding the parts where the characters speak, since it seems to be the best way to tell the story, and I'm a fan of his/her writings. ;) Next chapter will be coming out soon.


	3. Chapter 3: First Day

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

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_**CHAPTER 3: FIRST DAY**_

It was his first day at Kisaragi Academy, and Packer was extremely nervous. It wasn't like it was his first time going to school, but he was an American enrolling in a Japanese school, so there would probably be some awkward moments, even though he spoke almost perfect Japanese. But he also knew that he had a job to do, and finding out who the Nine were was priority number one.

He stopped at one of the intersections. The light was red, so he had to wait for a moment. Packer adjusted his backpack, waiting patiently for the light to change.

**"We haven't seen you around here before," **someone behind him said. Packer turned his head in the direction of the voice. There were two young boys around his height and age also waiting at the intersection. One was wearing a black jacket with black pants and a white and a red undershirt. He had platinum blonde hair and grey eyes. The other had short light brown hair and light brown eyes. He wore a white shirt with another blue shirt under it, gray pants, and white socks under blue uwabaki slippers.

_'Hmmm… these two seem oddly familiar to me…' _Packer thought silently to himself. **"I just moved here yesterday. I used to live in San Francisco, but I decided to come here to Japan, broaden my horizons," **Packer replied with a smile. **"The name's Packer. Pleased to meet you." **The blonde haired boy extended his hand. Packer grasped it in a firm handshake.

**"Yoshiki Kishinuma. This is Satoshi Mochida." **Satoshi shook Packer's hand as well.

**"Nice to meet you, Packer," **he said with a smile.

**"Likewise,"** Packer responded. _'So, these are two of the Nine. So far, so good, and we haven't even gotten to school yet.' _he thought.

**"Do you have a last name?" **Yoshiki asked.

**"No. I was orphaned as an infant, so I was taken in by a local orphanage. I was sent to many foster homes, but I never really had a steady family to call my own, and besides, I didn't really get along with any of them, so I guess you could say I became my own man when I turned fifteen. Since I have no family or no way of knowing who my real parents are, I decided to go without a last name, and it suits me just fine," **Packer explained, of course leaving out the part where he was a supernatural warrior for a secret organization.

**"Wow. I'd say you've had it pretty hard, but you seem to be getting along fine," **Satoshi replied, astonished by Packer's story.

**"Yeah, I guess you could say that. Not bad for a seventeen year old, eh?" **Packer replied with a shrug.

The light finally turned green, and the three of them continued their walk to school. **"So, where are you enrolled at?" **Yoshiki asked.

**"Kisaragi Academy," **Packer replied.

**"No kidding? Well, we go to that school as well. Looks like we'll be seeing a lot more of each other from now on," **Satoshi exclaimed.

_'A lot more than you think, Satoshi…' _Packer thought to himself.

**"Do you know what class you're in?" **Satoshi asked.

**"I think they told me it was class 2-9," **Packer replied.

**"No shit? That means you're in the same class as us. How ironic is that?" **Yoshiki said with a laugh.

**"Yeah, irony is pretty weird sometimes," **Packer said with a shrug.

A few minutes later, the three of them arrived at Kisaragi Academy. Needless to say, Packer was impressed. **"So, this is Kisaragi Academy, eh? Not bad," **he said with a whistle.

**"Best school I've been to, and that's saying something," **Yoshiki replied with a laugh. The three of them headed inside. Packer stopped at the office.

**"Well, I see you guys in a bit. I've gotta stop by and pick up my uniform." **Packer said.

**"Okeydokey. We'll see you in class." **Satoshi replied, and he and Yoshiki headed to their homeroom. Packer smiled.

**"I think I might like it here." **With that, Packer turned and headed into the office to collect his uniform.

* * *

Packer walked into classroom 2-9, now decked out in his new uniform. Unlike Yoshiki's, which was black, Packer's uniform was a deep green color, complete with his name badge pinned to it. He took his seat next to Yoshiki and Satoshi. There were still a few minutes before the bell rang for class. He took a minute and looked around the class. His eyes fell on a girl sitting behind Yoshiki. She had amber eyes and long brown hair that were styled into two curls on both sides of her head, just beneath her ears. She also wore a white barrette on the left side of her head. Like all the other girls in the school, she wore a tan-colored sailor outfit with a blue collar and lighter blue cuffs. Her uniform also consisted of a yellow bow held by a blue brooch to the top, and a blue pleated skirt. Packer found himself trying to hold back a blush.

_'Wow, she's pretty,'_ Packer thought to himself. The girl looked at him, and he quickly turned away, cheeks red from being caught staring. The girl tilted her head and smiled at him.

**"I haven't seen you around here before. Are you new here?" **she asked. Packer looked back at her and nodded.

**"Yeah, this is my first day here," **Packer replied a little shyly. The girl smiled even more broadly at him.

**"Well, I'll just have to do my best to make you feel comfortable here, "**she beamed. Yoshiki chuckled.

_'She's certainly energetic, that's for damn sure…'_ Packer thought. **"The name's Packer. Pleased to meet you," **he said.

**"Seiko Shinohara. So, it's just Packer, huh?" **the girl inquired.

The name struck a nerve with Packer. _'Seiko Shinohara… another one of the Nine…'_ **"Yeah, it's a long story…" **he began.

Just then, a girl with short brown hair and brown eyes came into the classroom. Seiko shrieked at the person.

**"Naomi! Over here!" **she exclaimed. Packer looked over at the girl.

_'Naomi… she must be Naomi Nakashima. Wait a second…' _ His eyes widened as he recalled one of his nightmares from last night, in particular, the one with the two girls kneeling. _'She's one of the survivors from my dream…'_ Packer thought. Naomi walked over to where they were sitting.

**"Jeez, Seiko, could you be any louder?" **Naomi asked. Seiko just giggled in response.

**"Sorry, Naomi. I'm just so excited to see you, that's all."**

**"It hasn't been that long since we saw each other, Seiko…" **Naomi sighed. Packer shook his head, trying to hold back a grin.

Naomi then noticed the green haired, green eyed boy sitting in between Yoshiki and Satoshi. **"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't even notice you. My name is Naomi Nakashima. And you are?"** she asked.

**"The name is Packer. Pleased to meet you," **Packer replied.

Naomi arched an eyebrow. **"What, you don't…" **she began.

**"Have a last name?" **he finished. **"No. It's a long story. I'm sure Yoshiki or Satoshi will explain later if I don't." **Seiko and Naomi looked at each other, eyebrows raised.

**"Wow, so you guys just met and are already on a first name basis? How does that work?" **Seiko asked. Packer was well aware that Japanese people addressed others by their last name unless they were really good friends or in a relationship.

**"Let's just say, we became friends at light speed," **Packer said with a shrug. The girls giggled at his response, while Satoshi and Yoshiki shook their heads while grinning. **"So, I'm a bit of a comedian. I like ribbing my friends from time to time," **Packer explained.

**"Really? You should see what Shinohara does with Nakashima on a regular basis," **Yoshiki said with a laugh. Naomi blushed.

**"Kishinuma, he doesn't need to know that," **she replied.

**"Yeah, but it's more fun if he does, Naomi,**" Seiko replied with a sinister giggle. Naomi just groaned.

_'Yep, I think things are gonna be pretty interesting around here,'_ Packer thought with a smile.

**"Hey, guys!"**

Everybody looked up. Three students were walking toward them. One was a girl with dull green eyes, medium long brown hair styled into a small ponytail at the top right side of her head, held by a hair tie with two pink spheres. Her bangs were kept back with two orange barrettes. Standing next to her was a tall boy with cobalt blue hair and green eyes, also wearing glasses. Like the other male students of Kisaragi Academy, he wore a gray gakuran uniform, his student ID pinned to his left, blue uwabaki slippers and dark red socks. Next to him was a girl with blue eyes and long blue hair styled into two pigtails, held with red hair ties. Like with Naomi, Packer recognized the blue-haired girl almost instantly.

_'She's the other survivor that was with Naomi…' _Packer thought.

**"Packer, this is Mayu Suzumoto, Sakutaro Morishige, and Ayumi Shinozaki," **Naomi explained.

**"Greetings, everyone. The name is Packer. Pleased to meet all of you," **Packer responded.

**"What, no last name?" **Mayu asked.

Packer sighed. **"No last name. I'll explain later," **he replied.

**"Well, it was nice to meet you, Packer-kun. I'm the class representative of 2-9, so if you have any questions at all, feel free to ask," **Ayumi said before taking her seat, along with Mayu and Morishige.

_'Suzumoto, Morishige, and Shinozaki. That's seven of the Nine I've now met…' _Packer thought. The bell rang, and into the classroom walked their homeroom teacher's assistant. She had brown, medium short hair and purple eyes. She is wearing cyan earrings, a light pink shirt with a darker one under it, an indigo skirt, black high-heels and a necklace with a panda ornament.

**"Who's that?" **Packer asked.

**"That's Ms. Shishido, our homeroom T.A.," **Satoshi explained. **"We usually call her Yui-sensei, though."**

**"I see…," **Packer said. _'So, there's one more of the Nine I haven't met yet. Judging by her last name, I'm guessing Yuka Mochida is Satoshi's sister,' _he thought. The classroom got quiet as the teacher walked up to the podium. _'Show time,' _Packer thought.

* * *

It was a whirlwind first day for Packer at Kisaragi Academy. He recalled the day's events after school had let out for the day. After introducing himself to his new classmates, the teacher had asked Satoshi to show Packer around the campus to help him familiarize himself with it. He got his fair share of unusual looks, mostly due to the fact that he was an American, but he also got some winks from some of the girls as well.

**"Seems like a few of the girls have taken notice of you," **Satoshi laughed. Satoshi was walking home from school with Packer. Yoshiki had stayed behind to help their other friends with school projects, which was unusual considering Yoshiki's reputation. Packer just shrugged.

**"I really don't see why. I'm not that handsome," **he replied.

**"Hey, I usually say that about myself. You trying to steal my material?" **Satoshi laughed.

**"If I did, I didn't mean to. I guess I'm just being modest again," **Packer replied. Satoshi just chuckled.

**"So, Packer, forgive me for prying a bit here, but I noticed you were a bit shy around Shinohara. Why is that?" **Satoshi asked. Packer glanced over at Satoshi for a moment, and then turned away, his face slightly red. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

**"Well… umm… I might have… a slight… crush on her… maybe…" **he said nervously.

**"Well, I have to warn you, Shinohara can be a bit… what's the word… flamboyant at times, especially around Naomi," **Satoshi said with a chuckle.

**"Yeah, I noticed. So, first name basis with Nakashima, eh? Looks like you're showing the same type of feelings toward Nakashima that I am towards Shinohara, Satoshi," **Packer replied with a sly smile. Now it was Satoshi's turn to be embarrassed.

**"Ah, well… we've been friends since kindergarten, and… admittedly, I am kind of fond of Naomi," **he replied, face red as a tomato. Packer chuckled.

**"I thought as much. So, if you've known her this long, why haven't you asked her out yet?" **he asked. Satoshi's face turned an even deeper shade of crimson.

**"I'm…well, I'm just not… very good at that… sort of thing. I mean, how am I supposed to ask her? Do I just flat out tell her, or imply that I am interested or what? Besides that, what if she's not even interested in me? I don't know if I could take that kind of rejection," **Satoshi admitted.

Packer ran his hand through his green hair, absorbing what Satoshi had told him. **"Well, you never know until you ask. Judging from what you've told me, I'd say you two would make a perfect match. I'd ask her out and see what she says," **Packer suggested. Satoshi stopped and looked at Packer for a second.

**"You know, Packer, you're making this all sound so easy. I just wish I wasn't so scared," **he replied. Packer stopped as well, looked at Satoshi, and put his hand on his shoulder.

**"Satoshi, there's nothing to be scared of. All it takes is a little self-confidence. Trust me on this," **he explained. Satoshi arched in eyebrow.

**"Does that mean you're gonna ask Shinohara out as well?" **Satoshi asked.

**"Well, I have an excuse. I've only known you all for one day. You, on the other hand, have known Nakashima for years. I can't believe you feel this strongly for her, yet you haven't even made a move yet, and besides, I can't say I blame you for having a crush on her. Admittedly, she is a very attractive girl," **Packer said.

Satoshi stood there with eyes wide, taking in what Packer was saying. _'Man, he knows a lot more than I gave him credit for, and he seems like a cool guy. I think we may become really good friends…' _he thought. **"You're right. I'll… think about it, okay?" **he asked, cheeks still red. Packer chuckled.

**"Sounds good to me," **he replied. **"So, why exactly did Yoshiki stay behind?" **Packer asked.

**"I think he said he's helping the girls with some class project. Wonder what got him motivated to do that," **Satoshi wondered.

**"Maybe he's got a crush on one of the girls," **Packer said with a chuckle. Satoshi glanced at Packer worriedly.

**"You don't think…" **Satoshi began.

**"Nah, I don't think it's our crushes. If I had to place a bet, I'd say he has his eyes set on our class rep," **Packer replied with a smile. Satoshi's eyes widened.

**"He has a crush on Shinozaki?! Really?!" **Satoshi exclaimed. Packer shrugged.

**"I'm not really sure, but considering that Suzumoto and Morishige seem to be tightly knit, it would make sense for Yoshiki to be head over heels for Shinozaki. I get the feeling there's a deep rooted friendship between them, although I'd say Yoshiki is wanting more than that. At least, that's the feeling I'm getting, anyway," **Packer replied.

**"Wow…" **Satoshi said, astonished by what he just heard.

They stopped in front of Packer's apartment. **"So this is where you live, huh?" **Satoshi asked.

**"Yep, and it's all taken care of, too," **Packer replied.

**"Nice. Well, I'll see you at school, tomorrow, Packer," **Satoshi said.

**"Okeydokey. See you, Satoshi," **Packer replied.

Satoshi continued down the sidewalk toward his home, while Packer walked up the stairs to his apartment. **"Yep, my time here is gonna be very interesting, indeed," **Packer said to himself. He walked into his apartment and shut the door behind him.


	4. Chapter 4: The Night Before

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

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_**CHAPTER 4: THE NIGHT BEFORE**_

Two months have passed since Packer's first day at Kisaragi. In that time, he felt more like part of the group, especially with Satoshi and Yoshiki. It was almost like they were brothers in a sense.

It was the night before the Kisaragi Academy Culture Festival. After helping set up everything, Packer left around 4:30 and began wandering the city. Considering that all of his homework had been completed, he had a lot of time on his hands, and decided to see what the city had to offer.

It was now around 9:00 p.m., and Packer was still walking around the city, still lost in his own thoughts. When he checked his watch and realized what time it was, he decided to head home, when a familiar voice sounded behind him.

**"So, checking out the sights and sounds of the city, eh, Packer?" **Packer turned and smiled at Yoshiki.

**"Yeah, I guess you could say that," **he replied. He fell in step with Yoshiki.

**"So, tomorrow's the big day. I don't know about you, but I'm a little nervous," **Packer said with a laugh.

**"Meh, I think we'll do fine. The girls have everything taken care of, so there's really nothing to be nervous about," **Yoshiki replied with a shrug.

**"Yeah, I guess so. Still, we've put a lot work into our Red Bean Café, so hopefully, we'll be considered the best class project in the whole festival. That'd be kind of cool," **Packer said. Yoshiki nodded in agreement. The two remained silent for a moment, until Yoshiki realized something.

**"You know, with this much free time on your hands, I figured you'd be with Shinohara right now. Something going on?" **Yoshiki asked. Packer blushed slightly, rubbing the back of his neck. About a month prior, Packer managed to work up the courage to ask Seiko out on a date. All in all, he considered the date a success, considering how much fun the two had together. However, they had yet to share their first kiss. And there was something else that was troubling Packer…

"**Nakashima is having a slumber party with Seiko at her house, and apparently, it's their first time, so who am I to say no to that?" **Packer said. Yoshiki looked over at Packer, noticing something in Packer's body language.

**"And why does that seem to bother you?" **Yoshiki asked. Packer stopped in his tracks and sighed. There really wasn't any use lying to Yoshiki. Packer quickly glanced around, making sure no one else was listening.

**"If I tell you, will you promise to keep it to yourself?" **Packer asked.

**"I promise," **Yoshiki replied. Packer sighed once again. How was he going to explain this?

**"Maybe I'm just overanalyzing Seiko by saying this, but… I think… she might have a crush on… Nakashima…" **Packer said, looking away briefly. Yoshiki arched an eyebrow.

**"What makes you say that?"** Yoshiki asked, curiosity now peaked.

**"Well, you've seen how Seiko acts around Nakashima. Teasing her with sexual innuendo, grabbing her ass, they all seem to indicate that her view of Nakashima goes beyond just a normal friendship. It almost seems like…" **Packer trailed off as he couldn't complete the sentence. Yoshiki's eyes widened, but then he chuckled.

**"Are you sure you're just not jealous of Nakashima, Packer?" **he asked with a smile.

**"No, it's not that. I legitimately think that Seiko's got it hard for Nakashima… and it kind of hurts, you know? To have major feelings for a girl, only to find out that she may have feelings for someone else? It really sucks. I guess sometimes, being perceptive can have its drawbacks," **Packer sighed. Yoshiki ran a hand through his hair. He knew that feeling of someone you like having feelings for someone else all too well.

**"Packer, I know exactly what you mean," **he replied.

* * *

Satoshi was sitting in the bathtub, his eyes closed as he thought about the events of that day. He was about to drift off to sleep, when suddenly…

**"Onii-chan!" **Satoshi yelped as he jerked awake, and noticed his younger sister Yuka standing at the edge of the tub… without any clothes on… which was a bit disturbing to Satoshi, to say the least.

**"Jeez, Yuka, you scared the crap out of me,"** he said.

**"You really are a scaredy-cat, aren't you?" **Yuka replied with a giggle. Satoshi's cheeks started to turn red with embarrassment.

**"I-I am not! I was about to fall asleep when you came running in and woke me up. It just… surprised me, that's all," **he responded. Of course, he wasn't prepared for the next thing she said.

**"Come on, hurry up and get out of the tub!" **Yuka exclaimed. Satoshi looked up at her, confused.

**"Why?" **he asked curiously.

**"I'll wash your body for you!" **she beamed. Satoshi just looked at her, dumbfounded. He knew that she really cared about him, but this was a bit too much in his mind. Especially since…

"**Ummm… well, that really isn't necessary, Yuka, since I'm already done washing already…" **he tried to explain. At his response, Yuka's expression changed, now looking a little depressed. She slid down onto her knees.

**"So you're done already…" **she replied sadly. Satoshi suddenly felt a little guilty at her reaction.

**"Yuka, what's wrong?" **he asked. She looked up at him.

**"Well, I figured that you'd be tired from all those preparations for the culture festival tomorrow, and I just thought I'd relieve some of the fatigue for you," **she replied, cheeks slightly red.

Satoshi smiled. His sister was so caring. _'Hmmm… maybe she's just trying to help. Ah, Yuka. Always thinking of others. You remind me of myself in a way…'_ he thought. He reached out and placed a hand on Yuka's head, causing her to look up at him.

**"You're so kind, Yuka," **he said with a smile. Yuka smiled right back at him. She grabbed his hand, causing confusion to reappear on Satoshi's face.

**"I'll wash you nonetheless! Come here, quickly," **she said suddenly. Satoshi's face reddened once again.

**"Um… I-I-It's really not necessary, Yuka…" **he began frantically. Yuka sighed in frustration.

**"Jeez… Fine. If you're gonna be like that, then I'll just join you instead!" **she exclaimed, stepping into the tub. Satoshi's eyes widened in pure shock and horror.

**"Hey, w-w-wait a second…!" **he began, but it was already too late, as Yuka was now in the tub with him. Satoshi sighed and face palmed. _'Maybe I should've just taken her up on her offer…'_

* * *

"**Naomi, you've got to tell me! Is there anything going on between you and Mochida-kun?" **Seiko asked excitedly. Naomi looked at her, eyebrows raised. It was their first slumber party at Naomi's house, and Seiko was looking to take full advantage of it to tease Naomi more than usual.

**"Umm… what do mean, Seiko?" **Naomi asked timidly. Seiko's mouth curled into a devious smile.

**"Naomi and Mochida-kun…" **she began. Before Naomi even knew what was happening, Seiko was behind her, and had her hands fully on Naomi's chest. Naomi gasped in surprise. **"…doing stuff like this…" **Seiko let go and moved around to face Naomi. **"…and perhaps this!" **Naomi's eyes widened and cheeks reddened when Seiko moved toward her, lips puckered. She wasn't going to…

Naomi grabbed the nearest pillow and stuck it right in Seiko's face. **"As if we'd actually do that!" **She exclaimed. Seiko sighed and fell back, resting her head on Naomi's pillow.

**"Aw, that's just boring," **she said. Naomi shook her head.

**"Well, I'm sorry for being boring," **she said. Seiko sat back up.

**"Well, the same goes for Mochida-kun. I can't believe he hasn't made a move considering how attractive you are. If I was him, I wouldn't be able to resist myself," **Seiko said with a grin. Naomi glanced away, face red as a tomato. She had to change the subject before she died of embarrassment.

**"So, Seiko, how are you and Packer getting along?" **she asked. Seiko tilted her head, as if in thought.

**"Well, he really seems like a nice guy. We always have lots of fun when we go out together. Of course, we haven't had our first kiss yet, which is a bit of a bummer, but I'm sure he'll be ready when the time comes," **she said with a smile.

**"But I thought you said he kissed you on your last date," **Naomi questioned.

**"Aw, that was just a kiss on the cheek. It doesn't count," **Seiko replied. Naomi giggled.

"**Um… wait. You're not planning on sleeping in my bed tonight, are you?" **she suddenly asked. Seiko turned her eyes off to the side, as if embarrassed by the question, although she actually wasn't. She really got a charge out of teasing Naomi.

**"Well…. maybe…?" **she replied with an innocent smile. Naomi sighed and turned toward a futon that had been set up on the floor.

**"Well, I've already set up a futon on the floor for you, so…" **she began, but then, she suddenly gasped. When Naomi turned her back, Seiko grinned devilishly as she snuck up and just barely ran her fingertips across Naomi's bottom. Naomi sighed in frustration. **"Seiko…" **she growled. **"Would you stop doing… Huh?" **She turned to admonish Seiko, but she wasn't behind her. _'Huh? Where'd she go?' _she thought.

**"Stop doing what?" **Seiko asked. Naomi spun around and saw Seiko sitting on the futon.

**"Wait, didn't you just touch my butt just now?" **She asked, confused. Seiko just smiled.

**"Naomi, maybe you're just sexually frustrated," **she said. Naomi took a step back, cheeks red.

**"Eh?!" **she exclaimed.

**"Maybe you should ask your darling Mochida-kun for a "favor" at tomorrow's culture festival. That'll cheer you up," **Seiko said, mouth curled into that cat-grin of hers. Naomi's face turned a deep crimson, and she shut her eyes to try to keep her frustration from escaping. Seiko giggled. She knew just what to say to get Naomi flustered. Naomi then looked up at her, a grin of her own starting to form.

**"I'll tell you what. I'll do what you suggest if you ask Packer the same thing," **she said. Seiko's smile suddenly vanished, and was replaced by a blushing face, followed by a nervous chuckle.

_'Damn, how could she turn the tables on me?' _she thought. **"Um… Well… I'll think about it, Naomi." **Naomi smiled. That got Seiko off her case, at least for the rest of tonight. She reached up to turn the bedroom light off.

**"Good night," **she said. She pulled the string, and the room went dark.

* * *

Morishige was sitting at his computer desk, scrolling through the pictures in his cellphone. After completing his homework, he had nothing else to do, and began mindless looking through the pictures he had taken. He stopped when he came to a picture of Mayu. His heart began to swell as he looked at the picture. _'Mayu… only you can truly make me smile…' _he thought to himself. Suddenly, the phone rang, as if on cue. He looked at the caller ID, and noticed it was none other than Mayu. He pressed the talk button and brought the phone up to his ear. **"Hello?"**

"**Hello, Morishige-kun? This is the class president speaking." **Morishige sighed, a small smile forming on his lips.

**"Hey, **_**Mayu**_**," **he replied. On the other side of the phone, Mayu let out a small giggle.

**"Darn, how did you know it was me?" **she asked.

**"Well, your caller ID shows up on my phone. So, what's up?" **Morishige replied.

**"Well, tomorrow's the culture festival, and I just wanted to call and wish you luck, that's all," **Mayu said. Morishige sighed.

**"Tomorrow's also your last day at Kisaragi, isn't it?" **he asked, his heart tightening. Mayu was silent for a few seconds. Her father was transferring to a new position on his job, and it required his family to move to a new location, which also forced a change in schools. Mayu had told her parents that she really didn't mind, but in reality, she was really torn at the decision.

**"Yeah, it is," **she replied sadly.

**"Ah, well. It's not the end of the world. You're not really moving that far away, and we can still call and talk to each other like we are now. Other than being in a different school, nothing will change," **Morishige replied, trying to cheer Mayu up.

**"Yeah, I guess so," **she said solemnly. Morishige arched an eyebrow.

**"So, you want things to change?" **he asked. Mayu gasped at the question. **"Well?" **She shook her head, knowing full well what she wanted.

**"No, I want nothing to change!" **she exclaimed.

Morishige smiled. **"That's good. Honesty is a powerful virtue," **he replied. He paused as he heard Mayu laugh over his answer. **"That's why there's nothing to be afraid of, Mayu. If anything happens, don't hesitate to contact me right away," **he replied.

**"I will," **Mayu said.

**"All right. Well, I've got to go. I'm a little busy at the moment, but I'll talk to you tomorrow at the festival," **Morishige replied.

**"Gotcha! I'll see you tomorrow, Shige-nii. Good night," **Mayu said.

**"Thanks," **Morishige replied, hanging up. He returned to gazing at the picture of Mayu, and his smile returned, now wider than ever. _'Mayu…' _he thought.

Mayu stared at her phone, a smile on her face and a blush on her cheeks. **"Thank you, Shige-nii," **she said wistfully. _'If only I could tell you how I really felt about you…' _she thought silently to herself.

* * *

Packer and Yoshiki walked silently down the sidewalk. Both seemed to be lost in their own thoughts. Yoshiki pulled to a stop as he looked over at a nearby grocery store. Packer stopped and looked back at Yoshiki.

**"Hm? What's wrong?" **he asked. He noticed that Yoshiki's face had brightened when he looked over toward the grocery store. He turned his head in the direction Yoshiki was staring at. Standing inside the store was their class rep, Ayumi.

**"Wonder what she's doing here," **Packer said.

**"Let's go find out," **Yoshiki replied, already walking toward the store. Packer smiled and shook his head. He knew Yoshiki too well.

_'Someone's head over heels for our class rep,' _Packer thought with a smile as he followed Yoshiki inside.

Ayumi pulled a coin from her purse to put into the printer, but she accidentally dropped it and it rolled away from her. As she tried to pick it up, she noticed two people in front of her. One of them bent down to pick the coin up, and she recognized him, as well as the person standing next to him.

**"Kishinuma-kun! Packer-kun!" **she exclaimed.

**"Well, if it isn't Shinozaki. What brings you out here so late?" **Yoshiki replied.

**"Well, our printer broke down, so…" **Ayumi trailed as she began looking around, a small blush creeping onto her face. Packer raised an eyebrow at that.

**"Who're you looking for, Shinozaki?" **he asked. She suddenly turned back to the boys.

**"Just so you know, we didn't bring Satoshi with us," **Yoshiki replied.

Packer looked at Yoshiki, and then back to Ayumi. Now it was beginning to make sense. '_Yoshiki likes Ayumi, but the problem is Ayumi seems to like Satoshi, while Satoshi likes Naomi, and vice versa. This could be a bit of a problem,' _Packer thought to himself.

Ayumi's expression sorrowed when Yoshiki explained that Satoshi had not come with them. She closed her eyes, trying to fight off the disappointment building inside her. **"Is that so? Too bad," **she said flatly.

Yoshiki flinched at her response, unsure of what to do or say next. He glanced outside and noticed a karaoke bar across the street. **"Hey, when were done here, do you want to the karaoke bar?" **he asked.

**"Nope. I just want my coin back, please," **she said bluntly, holding out her hand. Yoshiki's expression fell as she declined his offer.

**"O-okay," **he said as he placed the coin into Ayumi's hand. She turned back to place the coin into the printer, while Yoshiki let out a silent sigh. _'Damn,' _he thought sadly.

Packer watched as Ayumi rejected Yoshiki's offer. He really felt bad for Yoshiki, knowing what his true feelings toward Ayumi were. _'Ouch, he got shot down. I really wish there was something I can do, but as long as Ayumi is stuck on Satoshi, there really isn't much I can do. Of course, Satoshi has a crush on Naomi, so that could really complicate matters if Ayumi does decide to make a move. Ah, young love…' _Packer thought silently to himself. **"So, I guess you couldn't study or something?" **Packer asked.

**"I'm not studying. You guys do remember we're gonna see Suzumoto-san off at the end of the culture festival, right?" **Ayumi asked.

**"Oh, right. I almost forgot," **Packer replied. Tomorrow's culture festival would be Mayu's last day at Kisaragi Academy before transferring to a new school.

**"That's why we should make a lasting memory before she leaves, so I'm making a good luck charm, one that'll let us stay friends forever," **Ayumi said. A sheet of paper came out of the printer, with a doll figure printed on it.

Packer's eyes narrowed when he saw it. He had a bad feeling about it the moment he laid eyes on it. _'I really hope that's not the ritual she's talking about. But if that's the case, then the whole deal is gonna go down tomorrow night,' _Packer thought to himself.

**"Good luck charms, eh? Sounds pretty cool," **Yoshiki replied. Packer decided now might be a good time to call it a night.

**"Well, I'm gonna head for the house. You guys be careful on your way home," **Packer said as he walked out of the store.

**"Alright, we'll see you tomorrow, Packer-kun," **Ayumi called out.

Packer walked out and began a brisk run back towards home. _'If tomorrow is when it happens, then I'd better get ready for it,' _Packer thought. Little did he know what was going to be in store for him and his friends…


	5. Chapter 5: The Charm

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note: **If you haven't already, go back and take a look at the first chapter, since I completely rewrote it due to the fact that I didn't really like how it turned out. Also, I apologize for this chapter taking a bit longer to be uploaded than the others, but I really couldn't find the motivation for a while. :/

Anyway, enjoy. ;)

* * *

_**CHAPTER 5: THE CHARM**_

_**October 27, 2008, 6:45 p.m.  
**_

All the students of Kisaragi Academy had gone home after the Culture Festival had concluded, except for eight students from class 2-9, who stayed behind to clean up. Their Red Bean Café stand was considered by the other students as the best in the Festival. Just as Packer and the others had hoped for, it was a smashing success.

By the time they were done, it was around 7 o'clock in the evening, and it was pouring rain. Ayumi invited everyone to stay for a bit and listen to one of her "famous" ghost stories. Everyone agreed, although Satoshi needed some prodding from Packer and Yoshiki.

Everyone sat in a circle near the front of the classroom. Ayumi lit one of her candles as Packer switched off the lights and sat down beside Seiko.

**"It was a rainy evening after school, just like this one. A teacher, running down a flight of stairs, lost her footing, tumbled down the stairs, and died on impact with the floor. You've all heard the stories, right? Before Kisaragi Academy was built, there was another school on this property. Heavenly Host Elementary School, it was called," **Ayumi explained.

At mention of the school, Packer flinched slightly. _'Damn, that's the same school from my dreams. This has to be a coincidence, but something tells me that's not the case…' _Packer thought as Ayumi continued.

**"The misfortunes continued until eventually, on a certain day after the incident, it was decided that the school would be closed down. The Principal treated the school as if it were his own child. His heart was so severely broken, that on the closing day of the school, he climbed up to the school's rooftop… and committed suicide!"**

Everyone gasped, although Packer looked a little confused. **"So, let me get this straight. He loved the school so much that when it closed for good, he decided to defenestrate himself? Isn't that a little… extreme?" **he asked.

**"Maybe, but I guess without the school, he pretty much felt like he was dead," **Ayumi replied.

**"Hmm…" **Packer mumbled thoughtfully.

"**Where we are sitting right now, Kisaragi Academy, is where the cursed Heavenly Host Elementary once stood. In fact, the teacher that fell down the stairs still has no idea that she died on that day," **Ayumi continued.

**"S-Seriously?" **Satoshi asked nervously. Noticing this, Ayumi began to form a sinister grin on her face.

**"Oh, yes. They say on rainy days after school like this, she still roams through these dark hallways. In fact, it's just past seven, so she should be making her rounds soon…" **Ayumi said, smiling evilly.

Satoshi gasped in horror. Naomi glanced at him and giggled at his cowardice.

**"Are you alright, Satoshi?" **she asked teasingly. Satoshi quickly tried to regain his composure, although it was quite difficult for him to do so.

**"H-hey, don't you guys think it's time to head home?" **he asked timidly. Packer chuckled.

**"Wow, Satoshi, you look like you're about to piss your pants. But if you're gonna do that, can you please go somewhere else, because I'd rather not watch that," **he replied with a smirk. Everyone began cracking up laughing, except for poor Satoshi, whose face was now bright red. He frowned at Packer.

**"That was not cool, man," **he replied.

**"Damn, Packer, that was a slick joke you laid on Mochida-kun there," **Seiko laughed. Packer glanced at her, amusement still evident on his face.

**"What, you thought you were the only troll in the group? Hardly," **he laughed. Satoshi sighed in frustration.

**"Shinozaki-san, please continue with the story," **Mayu piped up. Morishige looked over at her skeptically.

**"Um, Mayu, you get scared easily, too. Is it really alright for you to keep listening?" **he asked. Satoshi shot Morishige a glare.

**"Morishige, just what do you mean by '**_**too**_**'?" **he growled.

**"Exactly what he meant, I'd say," **Packer responded with a laugh.

**"Ugh, damn it, Packer…" **Satoshi groaned as he face palmed.

**"Oh, Mochida-kun, relax. If you keep like that, you'll make Naomi start to hate you," **Seiko quipped. Naomi glanced over at Seiko, cheeks red.

**"Seiko…" **she complained, but Seiko just ignored her and turned back to Ayumi.

**"Ayumi-chan, go ahead and continue the story," **she said.

Ayumi nodded and turned back to the group. **"Whenever that teacher appears, she is always accompanied by a sudden blackout. You will then hear a 'knock knock' from the classroom door. As the door slooowly opens, a pale white face peaks in and asks **_**'Is anyone still here? Go home, children.'**_** And then…" **Just as she was about to finish, the candle suddenly blew out, bathing the classroom in complete darkness.

**"Yaaaaaaaargh!" **Satoshi suddenly screamed, causing the girls to scream as well. Satoshi stumbled to his feet in a panic. **"It's a blackout!" **he shouted.

**"Satoshi, don't scare us like that!" **Naomi exclaimed.

**"But it was scary!" **Satoshi replied, scared out of his wits.

**"Everyone relax. The candle just got blown out. No need to get your panties in a bunch," **Packer replied.

**"You'd probably like to see that, wouldn't you, Packer?" **Seiko asked with a grin. Packer just groaned.

Ayumi stood up, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. **"I don't like this. This shouldn't be happening…" **she said, fear evident in her voice. Yoshiki chuckled.

**"Nice one, Shinozaki. You actually had me fooled for a minute there," **he said.

**"But this isn't me! This is a real blackout!" **Ayumi exclaimed.

**"Maybe we just need to find the light switch," **Packer suggested, but was stopped in his tracks when a sound began to emanate from outside the classroom. It almost sounded like an organ playing. Packer raised an eyebrow at that. **"…the hell?" **Mayu clutched Morishige's arm, scared out of her mind at what was happening.

**"D-Doesn't anyone else hear that?!" **she asked.

**"It sounds like it's coming from the music room," **Morishige replied.

**"Who the hell would be playing the organ at this hour?" **Packer wondered out loud.

It was at that moment that there was a knock on the door. Two, in fact. The entire group gasped at the sound and turned in the direction of the door. Their eyes had adjusted to the darkness, but it was still difficult to make out anything in the room. Then, not a moment later, two more knocks sounded. Dead silence gripped everyone in the room.

**"No way…" **Ayumi muttered.

Everyone was paralyzed with fear as the story that Ayumi had been telling them seemed to be playing out right in front of their eyes, although Packer's curiosity was beginning to get the best of him.

**"I'll check it out. Everyone stay here for a minute," **he said. He carefully began to walk toward the door, as everyone else followed his silhouette. But before he could get there, he heard the door slide open just slightly, bringing him to a halt. Everyone else gasped at the sound. Then…

_**"Is anyone still here? GO HOME, CHILDREN . . ."**_ An eerie voice came from beyond the door. The next sound they heard was the classroom door sliding open completely.

Packer gasped at the sound, but he didn't have much time to think about it as the rest of the group suddenly screamed at the noise, and he felt himself being grabbed by someone.

**"Oomph… what the…" **he began, but stopped when the room was suddenly flooded with light. Everyone stopped screaming as they realized the lights were back on in the room. Then they heard someone's melodic laughter from the direction of the classroom door. Everyone turned to see…

**"Yui-sensei!" **Ayumi exclaimed. Ms. Yui was standing at the entrance to the classroom, a look of merriment on her face.

**"Did I surprise you?" **she asked, amusement still evident on her face.

**"Damn, and I thought Seiko and I were massive trolls," **Packer responded with a laugh. He then realized that someone had their arms wrapped around his waist, and their face buried in his chest. He looked down to see a head of brown hair with those familiar curls on both sides of her head. Packer was certain that his cheeks were a bright red color right now.

Seiko kept her face buried into the chest of whoever she had grabbed until she heard Ms. Yui's voice. She finally looked up and smiled at her homeroom T.A.

**"Hiya, Teach," **she said with a smile. Yui just giggled at her, causing her to raise an eyebrow in confusion.

**"Umm… Seiko…" **She looked up at the source of the voice and gave a small gasp. The person she had grasped onto was Packer, whose cheeks had a slight red tint on them.

**"Ummm… hi," **he said nervously. Seiko giggled lightly at his shyness, a slight blush appearing on her own cheeks.

**"Hey, yourself," **she replied, unwrapping her arms from around Packer. **"Sorry about that," **she said.

Packer shrugged in response, as if to say "no big deal." He glanced over at Satoshi, and had to bite his lip in order to keep from laughing out loud. **"Hey, Seiko, take a look at ol' Mochida-kun. Guess he's bolder than we thought, eh?" **he whispered with a grin. Seiko, wondering what Packer meant, turned her head in Satoshi's direction, and like Packer, had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from cracking up at what she was seeing.

Satoshi, much like Seiko, had grasped onto something or someone when the door slid open. When the lights came on and he saw that it was his homeroom T.A., he closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Then, he heard Naomi's voice, and she didn't sound too happy…

**"**_**Satoshi**_**…" **she growled. Satoshi opened his eyes and glanced up at Naomi, who had her eyes closed in massive frustration.

**"Just where do you think you're touching, **_**mister**_**?"**

He gulped as he looked down to where his hands were… firmly clutching Naomi's breasts. Satoshi's face became engulfed in crimson, and a horrified gasp erupted from his diaphragm as he immediately removed his hands from Naomi's chest.

**"I-I'm so sorry! I-I couldn't see where I was grabbing! Please don't be mad, Naomi," **Satoshi pleaded.

Naomi opened her eyes and glared at Satoshi for a moment before softening her expression. **"It's alright, Satoshi. Just don't go doing that again, 'kay?" **she replied with a smirk. Satoshi simply nodded, obviously too embarrassed by his actions to say anything else. Naomi inwardly giggled. _'I can't really stay angry at Satoshi. Besides, he's not the kind of guy that would do something like that on purpose, anyway,' _she thought to herself. She glanced over at Seiko and Packer, who were still trying to stifle their laughs. Naomi simply rolled her eyes at them.

"**I figured you all would've gone home after you finished cleaning up," **Yui said.

**"Well, we would've, but our class rep invited us to listen to one of her ghost stories," **Packer replied.

**"I see. That reminds me. Mochida-kun, I ran into someone out in the hall who is here to see you," **Yui said.

**"Eh?" **Satoshi replied, confused. _'Who'd want to see me?' _he thought.

He got his answer as a young girl with light blue eyes and medium short purple hair appeared in the doorway. She was also wearing a simple pink headband, a blue dress with a white collar and a small pink bow on it, white mid-calf socks and yellow uwabaki slippers, just like the students of the Kisaragi Academy Junior High. She was clutching an umbrella in her small hands.

**"Onii-chan!" **she exclaimed.

Satoshi gasped in surprise. **"Yuka?! What brings you here?" **he asked.

**"She told me that since it was raining out, she came to give you an umbrella," **Yui explained.

**"Ah, is that so? Thanks, Yuka," **Satoshi replied with a smile. Yuka giggled in response. Naomi tilted her head in confusion.

**"Wait, what? This is your little sister?" **she asked.

**"Nice to meet all of you. I'm Yuka Mochida. Thank you for taking care of my big brother," **Yuka said with a smile.

Packer raised an eyebrow in response. _'So, this is Yuka Mochida, Satoshi's little sister. The last of the Nine…' _Packer thought silently to himself.

The other girls smiled at Yuka. **"Awwww, so cute!" **the girls exclaimed.

**"Satoshi, you never told me you had such an adorable little sister!" **Naomi exclaimed. Satoshi rubbed the back of his head in confusion.

**"Really? I could've sworn I told you about her…" **he mumbled.

**"You never said a thing, bud," **Packer replied. Yoshiki stepped toward Yuka.

**"You really like your big brother, don't you?" **he asked with a smile. Yuka giggled at his question.

**"Yep, I sure do!" **she exclaimed. Satoshi's face continued to get redder and redder, while Naomi just got more confused.

**"Seems like she's met Kishinuma before…" **she muttered to herself.

Seiko went over and sat down on one of the desks. **"Looks like a powerful rival has appeared, Naomi," **she grinned. Naomi smiled over at her friend with tinted cheeks.

**"I'm not really sure what **_**you're**_** talking about…" **she replied. Before Seiko could respond, Naomi walked over and clamped her hand over Seiko's mouth. **"I swear, Seiko, your mouth says the craziest stuff,"** she giggled. Seiko tried to respond, but Naomi giggled as she kept her hand over her mouth, much to Seiko's dismay.

Packer face palmed and shook his head in amusement. **"No chance of getting bored around here, that's for damn sure…" **he muttered under his breath.

* * *

Packer breathed a sigh of relief as he slid the last desk back into place. **"Well, that's the last of them. What do you say we get the heck out of here?" **he asked.

**"Good idea," **Yui responded. She walked over to Mayu. **"Suzumoto, I know how hard it is to say goodbye, but I wish you the best of luck at your new school. I know you will do just fine," **she said. Mayu was silent as her face gave away the sadness boiling inside her. The others exchanged concerned looks, as well.

**"…Thanks, Yui-sensei…" **Mayu replied sadly.

"**It won't be the same without you, Suzume, but this isn't the end for us. Not by a long shot," **Seiko said with a broad smile, hoping to raise her friend's spirits.

**"That's right. And you'll make new friends at your new school in no time. I'm positive of it," **Ayumi replied.

**"And you won't be moving that far away, either. Come winter break, we'll all make sure to come and visit," **Naomi grinned.

**"Hmm, maybe I should tag along as your guardian," **Yui laughed.

**"It's settled then. And I'll make sure to have more ghost stories to tell by then," **Ayumi replied with a smile.

Yoshiki let out a small sigh. **"You really like those creepy stories, don't ya?" **he asked with a flat look. At that, Ayumi turned and glared up at the blond young man.

**"You got a problem with that, **_**Kishinuma-kun**_**?" **she asked, putting a bit of emphasis on his name to showcase how annoyed she was.

Yoshiki immediately backpedaled at Ayumi's outburst. **"Uhhh… no, not really," **he replied sheepishly, tugging at the collar of his uniform.

Packer shook his head as a lopsided grin formed on his face. _'Yoshiki, you can be a funny guy when Shinozaki's around,' _he thought. Mayu also giggled at Ayumi and Yoshiki's little exchange.

**"I'll hold you too that, Shinozaki-san," **she replied.

**"Suzumoto." **She looked over in Packer's direction. **"I've only known you for two months, but it feels like we've known each other forever. That's how big of an influence you've been on me, on all of us, and even though you're leaving us, those feelings will never change. We're always gonna be friends, Suzumoto. Never, ever forget that," **he spoke with confidence. The others nodded in agreement.

Tears welled up in Mayu's eyes at Packer's kind words. She really was fortunate to have such caring friends. **"You guys…"** she said sadly, emotions starting to overflow.

Yuka looked up at Satoshi. **"Hey, Onii-chan, what's wrong with that girl over there?" **she asked.

**"She's transferring to a different school. Today's culture festival was her last day," **Satoshi replied.

**"Awww…" **Yuka cooed.

After a few moments, Mayu worked up the courage to speak. **"Thank you, all of you, so much. I'm so grateful to have you all as my friends. You guys have a special place in my heart, and you always will!" **she exclaimed, her passionate words resonating throughout the classroom.

Morishige had to turn away for a moment, his emotions nearly reaching the breaking point at Mayu's speech. Packer noticed this, and a small smile formed on his face. He knew Morishige had strong feelings for Mayu, and he rarely showed emotion unless Mayu was around. She was truly the only person in the world that could put a smile on his face.

Packer hadn't really connected with Morishige like he did with Satoshi and Yoshiki, but he had a lot of respect for the cobalt haired young man, and he felt like he earned his trust, especially considering what had happened a few weeks ago…

* * *

_**TWO WEEKS EARLIER…**_

Packer was running down the hallway after school, hurrying back to classroom 2-9. **"Damn, I hope I left my cellphone in my desk. Gotta hurry, or Seiko's gonna kill me for being late to our date," **he said in a panic. He burst through the door of the classroom, only to run right into someone. **"Oomph!" **Packer was stunned for a brief second, then he shook the cobwebs from his head and looked down at who he had run into. **"Oh, my God! I'm sorry, Morishige! You alright?" **he asked, a concerned look on his face.

Morishige glared up at him, annoyed. **"Do I look okay to you, Packer?!" **he exclaimed.

**"Uhhh… I'm really sorry, Morishige. I… didn't really expect anyone to still be here after school," **Packer responded sheepishly. Morishige sighed.

**"Honestly, you're always in such a rush. You need to slow yourself down every now and again," **he quipped. Packer tilted his head and gave a lopsided smirk.

**"Sometimes, I'd love to, but my lifestyle doesn't really allow that to happen too often," **he admitted.

**"I see," **Morishige replied.

He put a hand on his head, and suddenly realized something was missing. **"Oh, great. I don't know where my glasses went," **he said with disgust.

**"Your glasses? Here, I'll help you find them," **Packer replied. He walked over to the desks and began searching for them.

**"Just be careful you don't step on…" **Morishige began, but just as he said that, Packer moved to look under another desk and…

_CRACK!_

Packer froze at the sound and looked down. He removed his foot and bent down to pick up the now shattered glasses off the floor. **"Oh… shit," **he mumbled sheepishly. Morishige groaned at hearing his glasses being stepped on. Of all the rotten luck…

**"Goddammit, Packer… Who else but you would step on them AS I'M SAYING THAT?!" **he yelled in frustration. Packer glanced away in embarrassment. He felt absolutely terrible for breaking Morishige's glasses, even though it was an accident.

**"God, I'm so sorry, Morishige. I'll buy a new pair of glasses when my check arrives, I promise," **Packer responded.

Morishige glared at Packer for a second, but then relaxed and let out a sigh of resignation. **"No, it's all right. I've got an old pair at home I can use," **he said. Packer sighed in relief as he saw Morishige calm down.

**"Really?"** he said.

**"Yeah, but the problem is, I can't actually GET home in my current state. Without my glasses, I'm blind as a bat," **Morishige responded with a sigh.

Packer face palmed when he heard that, feeling like a total dunce. Now that he thought about it, he never saw Morishige without his glasses, and now he knew why. Morishige was virtually helpless without them. Packer sighed once more. He knew that Seiko wasn't going to be happy with him for being late to their second date, but at the same time, he wasn't going to leave Morishige hanging, especially since he was at fault.

"**I'll help you get home. Just let me grab my cellphone real quick and then I'll help you out," **he said, rushing over to his desk. He opened it, and thankfully, his cellphone was resting on top of one of his books. _'Thank goodness,' _he thought. He closed the desk and rushed back over to where Morishige was still sitting on the floor. He held out his hand. **"All right, Morishige. Let's get your crippled ass home," **he said with a grin.

As Morishige was helped to his feet, he let out an annoyed grunt at Packer's joke. **"Just so you know, I'm actually in perfect health, Packer," **he quipped.

**"Yeah, but without your glasses, you might as well be crippled," **Packer laughed. Morishige let out a small laugh himself.

**"I guess that is true, isn't it?" **Both let out a small laugh at that.

**"Give me a second, Morishige. I have to call and tell Seiko that I'm gonna be a tad bit late," **Packer said. Morishige nodded, and Packer flipped his phone open and called Seiko to let her know of the situation.

Morishige had one arm wrapped around Packer's neck while Packer kept an arm on Morishige's shoulders as they exited the classroom. **"Remember, you have to be my eyes, Packer. Everything just looks like one blurry mess without my glasses," **Morishige said.

**"I'm just glad **_**I**_** have perfect 20/20 vision," **Packer laughed.

**"Bragging is really not your strong suit, Packer," **Morishige replied.

**"Ain't that the damn truth," **Packer said.

**"Packer… thank you for doing this," **Morishige said. Packer shrugged.

**"No problem. I do feel terrible for causing all of this, and I don't leave my friends hanging," **Packer replied.

Morishige smiled at him, suddenly having a newfound respect for his green haired colleague. **"So, what did Shinohara have to say?" **he asked.

**"Eh, she's not upset about the whole thing. She understands why I'll be late tonight, although she did tell me to 'not have too much fun with ol' Shige-nii'," **Packer said, rolling his eyes at Seiko's remark. Morishige only shook his head.

**"Why is Shinohara such a pervert?" **he wondered out loud.

**"I don't know, but I wouldn't have her any other way," **Packer laughed. Morishige chuckled at that, and the two continued down the hall toward the school's exit.

* * *

Packer smiled as he thought back to that incident several weeks ago. _'Well, I hope Morishige sees me in a different light after that day,' _Packer thought silently to himself. He looked up as he suddenly heard Seiko start crying.

**"Ohhhh, Suzume… Take care out there. I'll always be watching over you from the heavens above!" **she sobbed. Packer instantly face palmed.

**"Lord have mercy," **he muttered, trying to hide a smile.

**"Uh… Earth to Seiko, you're not really making any sense, you know," **Naomi responded with confusion.

After taking a moment to regain control of his emotions, Morishige turned and placed his hand on Mayu's shoulder, causing her to look up at him. **"Mayu, don't cry anymore. Come on, let's see that wonderful smile of yours," **he said, flashing a smile of his own. He stepped back and pulled out his phone, preparing to take a picture.

Mayu gasped and quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. **"O-Okay, but can we get everyone in the picture?" **she asked. Everyone agreed to this with eagerness.

**"Alright, then. Everybody move into position," **Morishige said.

All five girls stood in a line at the front of the group, with Naomi on the far right, Seiko on her left, Mayu in the middle, Ayumi next to her, and Yuka on the far left, while Yui, Yoshiki, Packer, and Satoshi stood behind them, with Packer draping his arms over the shoulders of Satoshi and Yoshiki. Morishige lined up the shot and took the picture.

_SNAP!_

"**Perfect! I'll send the picture to all of your phones right now," **Morishige said with a smile.

**"Oooooh, this picture is so cool!" **Seiko exclaimed.

**"I'm definitely gonna put this as a background on my computer," **Naomi giggled.

After a few moments, Ayumi spoke up. **"Hey guys, before we head home, there is something I'd like to do with everyone," **she said. She reached into her pocket and brought out a paper doll.

**"What's that, Shinozaki?" **Yui asked.

**"It's a friendship charm, called 'Sachiko Ever After'. It's a charm I found on the internet. You see, if we do this charm, then no matter how far apart we are, we will always be friends," **Ayumi replied.

Upon seeing the doll, Packer's eyes suddenly narrowed. It was the same paper doll Ayumi had shown to him and Yoshiki the previous night at the grocery store. _'Crap. This must be the ritual my dreams have been referring too, but why is it being touted as a 'friendship charm'? Hard to believe something like this would be connected to something so sinister,' _Packer thought. At that moment, his mind was suddenly flooded with the nightmarish images he had been dreaming about for months. He was convinced. The hell that he and his friends were going to go through could be traced to this seemingly harmless paper charm.

He wanted so desperately to warn the others about their impending fate, but he also remembered what his superiors had told him. He could not intervene until after the ritual was completed and they were all inside the school. Preventing the charm from taking place would have negative effects on the space-time continuum. However, once inside, Packer was told to use whatever means necessary to bring all nine of his friends out alive.

"**Hey, Packer, you okay?" **Satoshi asked. Packer came out of his thoughts and looked up at Satoshi, who had a look of concern on his face.

**"Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I zoned out for a minute there," **he replied.

**"So, how does this charm work?" **Naomi asked.

**"Okay, first, all of us have to gather in a circle around the Sachiko doll and in your head repeat the words 'Sachiko-san, we beg of you' once for each person here. Since there are ten of us, we all have to repeat it ten times," **Ayumi explained. As she spoke, Packer could feel the hairs on the back of his neck start to stand up.

"**Don't worry if you flub it a little. Just don't stop partway through. You have to say it one time for every person present. No more, no less, or else the charm will fail," **Ayumi finished.

**"Hmm, I wonder what happens if the charm fails," **Yoshiki said thoughtfully. The comment struck a nerve with Packer. _'So that's it. The charm must've failed somehow and that's what causes everyone to be pulled into Heavenly Host. Did someone screw up the charm somehow by forgetting to count? Is that REALLY what causes this whole deal to happen? Or is there something else we haven't thought of?' _he thought.

"**All right, let's get started. Ready and GO!" **Ayumi yelled. Everyone closed their eyes and began repeating the phrase ten times in their head. Packer was doing the same, but with his eyes open. He didn't exactly know what was going to happen, but his nerves and senses were now on full alert.

After a few moments, everyone opened their eyes.

**"Did everyone make sure they said it ten times?" **Ayumi asked. Everyone nodded. **"All right. Everyone grab onto the paper doll anyway you can," **Ayumi explained. All ten gathered around and took hold of the paper doll. **"All right, on the count of three, we'll all pull on it until it rips apart. And, one… two… three… and, pull!"**

Everyone pulled on the doll, tearing into ten separate pieces. A flash of lightning lit up the classroom, making Satoshi jump a little. **"Nicely done. Everyone, keep your scrap of paper somewhere safe so you don't lose it," **Ayumi explained.

**"So this scrap of paper means something, eh?" **Yoshiki asked.

**"Yes. As long as we all have that piece, we'll always be connected together as friends. That is how this charm works," **Ayumi replied.

Naomi and Seiko looked at each other with a broad smile. **"That's pretty nice, if you ask me," **Naomi said as she put her scrap in her student ID.

**"Ohhh, that's so cool! I need to make sure I don't lose it!" **Seiko exclaimed with a blushing face.

**"Well, now that that's done, how about we all pack up and go home?" **Yui asked.

**"Sounds good to me," **Yoshiki replied with a yawn.

Packer continued to stare at his charm scrap with apprehension. He had been expecting something to happen once they tore the doll apart, but so far, there was nothing out of the ordinary, and for some reason, that didn't sit well with the green haired young man. _'Hmmm… Originally, there were just nine people performing the charm. Did my presence in the ritual throw a monkey wrench into the whole works?' _he thought. Surely, it wasn't that easy. Nothing was ever easy in his line of work.

Ayumi noticed that Packer was staring at his scrap with a weird look on his face. **"Is something wrong, Packer?" **she asked, concerned. Packer looked over at her and smiled.

**"It's nothing. I was half expecting something bad to happen while doing this charm," **he admitted. Seiko let out a small laugh.

**"Come on, Packer-kun. Surely you don't believe in that supernatural nonsense, do you?" **she asked with a grin. Packer looked back at the charm scrap before slipping it into his cellphone.

**"I do sound a little ridiculous, don't I?" **he laughed. **"Guess it was just my imagin…" **He suddenly stopped in his tracks, and his eyes went wide as his mind was flooded with a sudden image. He knew it could mean only one thing.

His Future Sight had activated.

Seiko looked up at Packer when he stopped mid-sentence. She began to get worried when she saw the wide-eyed look Packer had on his face. **"Packer?" **she called to him. Everyone else stopped and stared at Packer's unusual behavior, and looks of concern began appearing on their faces as well.

Packer grunted as he came out of Future Sight, a bit disoriented from the experience. As the cobwebs cleared from his head, he suddenly realized what was going to happen. **"Oh, shit," **he mumbled.

**"Packer, what's wrong?" **Yui asked him. His eyes widened in horror.

**"…Earthquake," **he mumbled silently.

**"What?" **Yui asked, not understanding what Packer was saying. He looked up at his friends, fear evident on his face, and in his voice.

**"There's gonna be an earthquake!" **he shouted.

Everyone looked at each other with confused faces. **"So, what? You can see the future now, Packer?" **Naomi laughed. Packer frowned at her, but then he gasped. The room suddenly started to shake a little bit. Everyone froze as they felt it. Yoshiki looked at Packer in amazement.

**"No way…" **he croaked out.

Suddenly, the earthquake got stronger, shaking everything in the room violently, knocking everyone off their feet. The girls screamed as the quake intensified. **"Everyone, get under your desks!" **Yui shouted. This proved to be impossible, as the quake was so strong they couldn't really stand up or even move for that matter. Several of the desks toppled over, a few of the ceiling lights came crashing down, and the windows started to crack from the intensity of the quake.

Packer tried to make it back to his feet, but lost his balance and slammed into the wall, near the classroom door. After a few more seconds, the quake subsided. Yuka's face was buried into her brother's chest, while Seiko had grasped onto Naomi for support. They all began to relax as the danger appeared to be over. Yui looked over to where Packer had landed near the door. He was struggling to get back to his feet after having the wind knocked out of him.

**"Packer!" **she shouted.

**"Is everyone alright?" **Packer asked. Everyone nodded and said yes. It was then that something dawned on Seiko.

**"Packer, how did you know that an earthquake was gonna happen?" **she asked in astonishment. Everyone turned their heads in Packer's direction, waiting for a response.

Packer cursed under his breath, realizing he had inadvertently revealed one of his hidden abilities. **"It's a long story, Seiko," **he replied. Suddenly he gasped, and his eyes went wide just like before, as his Future Sight activated once again. Seiko gasped in horror.

**"Oh, God, not again," **she said, knowing what had happened the last time he did this.

He grunted as his Future Sight ended, but it didn't take long for him to regain his awareness after realizing what he had just been shown. He looked up at the group, a look of pure horror on his face. **"**_**EVERYONE MOVE! GET OUT OF THE WAY!" **_he shouted. Everyone looked at each other in confusion, not to mention concern. Was their green haired friend seeing glimpses of the future?

Packer's warning came too late. Out of nowhere, the floor around them suddenly began to disintegrate, and before any of them could react, a massive hole opened up beneath them. They screamed as they began to fall into the dark depths below.

Packer watched in horror as the image he had received through his Future Sight came to life in front of him. Instinctively, he rushed to his feet and dove for the hole, desperately trying to save whomever he could. But he just missed grabbing Seiko's hand by mere inches. He watched as his friends were sucked into the dark abyss below.

**"**_**PACKER!" **_Seiko screamed as she disappeared from his view.

**"**_**SEIKO!"** _Packer shouted.

He slammed his fist against the ground in frustration. **"**_**DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!" **_he exploded. He desperately tried to quell his anger, realizing it wasn't going to do any good losing his cool. He knew this was the inevitable outcome. It was his job to change the fate of the Nine, by any means necessary.

He stood up, and brought his hands together, as if in prayer. Light covered his body for a split second, before it disappeared, revealing that Packer had transformed into a Knight of the Covenant. He wore a dark green heavy jacket, with a badge showing the Covenant logo attached on the upper right portion of his jacket, near the base of his neck. He wore dark green gloves that also donned the Covenant logo on the back. He also wore dark green pants, with a gold belt around his waist, with a belt buckle that also donned the Covenant logo. He was also wearing shoulder pads that looked to be made out of pure emerald, connected to a cape that extended down to his waist. He also wore knee pads and shin-high boots that also looked like they were made out of emerald. His trusty katana sword, Shiden, was strapped to his back.

With his transformation complete, Packer stepped up to the hole and peered into the darkness that lay within. **"I swear, on my soul, I will get you all out alive. That is a promise," **he said. Cracking his neck, he took a few steps back, got a running start, and jumped into the hole. His friends were now trapped within the hellacious walls of Heavenly Host Elementary.

Now, he had to get them out alive. No matter what it takes.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Whew. This one took a lot longer than expected. But the good news is we're starting to get into the meat of the story.

The next chapter is when the fun really begins. ;)


	6. Chapter 6: Welcome to Heavenly Host

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note: **Thanks to all of you for helping my story nail the 1,000 view mark. I don't really know if that's any good, but I figured it'd be nice to say it. XD

Anywho, here's Chapter 6. Enjoy. ;)

* * *

_**CHAPTER 6: WELCOME TO HEAVENLY HOST**_

The rotted walls were barely holding up. Floorboards were torn away, sticking up, and rust-covered nails jutted out from the floor. Dust and dirt coated the room, giving the air a thick stench. Desks were overturned, their legs rusted beyond belief. Dead silence gripped the area.

This was the scene that greeted Packer when he had awoken. He was unsure how long he had been lying face down and unconscious on the floor. He recalled that after he jumped into the hole, everything went dark, and the next thing he knew he was waking up in what appeared to be a rundown classroom.

As his eyes adjusted, he realized that this room looked very similar to the ones he had been having nightmares about. He also realized with a start that he was all alone.

**"Seiko… Satoshi… Naomi… Yoshiki… can anyone hear me?!" **he shouted, hoping that at least one of his friends would hear him. All that he got in response was an eerie silence. _'Damn, we must've been separated from each other. Gotta hurry and find everyone and get the hell outta here!'_

Packer stepped out into the darkened hallway, wondering which direction he should go. Since he didn't have a map, he was pretty much flying blind. In addition, the air was incredibly thick, almost as if it was trying to suffocate him. He also sensed some type of malice within these walls, a powerful grudge, strong enough to make the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end…

Without hesitation, he reached back and pulled Shiden from its sheath. Electricity discharged from the blade as he held it out in front of him. He didn't know what he was going to run into in this place, but he wasn't going to let anything stand in the way of completing his mission. He began walking forward, disappearing into the darkness of the hallway.

* * *

A bolt of lightning lit up the darkened classroom. Naomi was lying on the floor, unconscious. As the thunder rumbled, she began to stir.

**"Unnnngh… what happened?" **she muttered. She sat up, rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. She looked to be in a classroom, but it was not Kisaragi, she knew with certainty. It looked to be an abandoned classroom in massive disrepair. **"Where is everyone?" **She tried to stand up, but felt a sharp pain in her left foot. **"**_**OUCH!"**_ she yelled, falling back to one knee.

**"Oh, man. My foot really hurts. I must've sprained it somehow." **She carefully stood up and scanned the room. **"This place is really beat up, and the desks are so small. It almost looks like an elementary school." **She continued to scan the room, when she suddenly gasped. Lying on the floor not far from her was one of her classmates. She instantly recognized who it was.

_**"SEIKO!"**_ she shouted. Seiko wasn't moving, causing Naomi's fear to skyrocket. She limped over to where Seiko was lying and shook her a bit to try to wake her up. **"Seiko! Come on, wake up!" **After a few shakes, Seiko moaned as she began to regain consciousness.

**"Ohh, my head…" **Seiko mumbled. Naomi sighed in relief.

**"Seiko, thank goodness you're okay!" **she exclaimed.

Seiko pulled herself up to where she was sitting on her knees. She looked at Naomi in confusion. **"What's up, Naomi? Is it lunch time already?" **she asked.

**"Seiko, don't you remember? We did that charm Shinozaki brought, and the next thing I knew, we were here in this place," **Naomi explained. It took Seiko a moment to sink all of this in.

**"So it's just you, Naomi? Where's everyone else?" **Seiko asked.

**"I don't know. You're the first person I've found since I woke up," **Naomi replied.

Naomi stood up and looked out the window. Something outside caught her attention. **"Huh? There's a forest outside?" **she mumbled, puzzled. She tried to open the window, but it wouldn't budge. **"Gah, it's not moving," **she sighed.

Seiko took out her cellphone and flipped it open, but it didn't have any reception whatsoever. **"Crap, there's no signal here for whatever reason," **she said. **"Oh, well. Let's try to find a way out of here, eh?"**

Naomi glanced at Seiko and nodded. **"Good idea. I don't want to be trapped in this place any longer than we have to." **She began walking toward Seiko, who noticed that she was limping slightly.

**"Hey, Naomi, what's wrong with your foot?" **she asked.

**"Eh, I must've twisted my ankle or something," **Naomi replied.

**"Eh?! Are you alright?!" **Seiko exclaimed, worried that Naomi might be in a lot of pain.

**"I'm fine. It hurts a little, but as long as I don't put too much pressure on it, I should be okay," **Naomi reassured. She didn't want Seiko to stress too much over it.

Seiko walked over and put one of Naomi's arms around her shoulders. **"Here, I'll give you a hand," **Seiko said.

**"Thanks, Seiko," **Naomi replied, grateful for her friend's assistance.

As they walked into the hallway, Seiko's foot bumped into a metal bucket on the floor, its contents sloshing around. **"Huh? Why is there a bucket on the floor, and what's it filled with?" **She took a closer look, only to pull back in disgust. **"Ugh, someone took a piss in it." **Naomi bit her lip to keep from gagging.

**"Too much info, Seiko," **she gasped.

**"Sorry," **Seiko apologized.

After walking around for a few minutes, the girls stopped for a moment to assess their surroundings. **"Seems like we're the only ones here," **Naomi said.

**"Which means…"** Seiko began, a devious smile forming on her face. Naomi looked at her in confusion.

**"What?" **she asked.

**"I'm all alone with Naomi-san!" **Seiko yelled, as she suddenly wrapped her arms around Naomi in a massive bear hug, while burying her face into Naomi's chest, giggling the whole time. Naomi's cheeks turned cherry red at Seiko's wacky behavior, while trying to push Seiko away from her chest.

**"H-Hey, just what do you think you're doing?! Stop playing around, Seiko! We need to try to find a way out of here!" **she exclaimed.

Seiko glanced up at Naomi, a blush forming on her own cheeks. **"There's no need to hurry, Naomi. I just want to spend time with you, that's all," **she grinned, before burying her face back into Naomi's chest, giggling like before.

**"Seiko!" **Naomi complained, pushing back harder than before. Seiko stepped back and grinned at Naomi, who just shook her head with embarrassment.

The two of them eventually arrived at a stairwell. **"It looks like these stairs lead down to the bottom floor. The exit shouldn't be too far away!" **Seiko exclaimed excitedly.

**"I hope so. I wanna get out of this spooky place ASAP," **Naomi agreed.

Just as they began to walk down the steps, they suddenly froze in their tracks as they heard a weird buzzing noise coming from the bottom of the stairwell. It was faint at first, but it steadily grew louder and louder, almost as if it were coming toward them.

**"What is that noise?" **Naomi wondered out loud.

**"It almost sounds like… something discharging, like electricity, but it sounds like it's coming our way," **Seiko replied. Naomi looked at her best friend in confusion.

**"How is that possible?" **she asked.

At that moment, something shiny came into view from around the corner. Both girls gasped. It appeared to be a long katana sword, and Naomi could swear that electricity was swarming up and down the blade. Goosebumps ran up and down her arms, and she imagined that Seiko was probably feeling the same thing, especially at her next thought.

Who was it that was holding the electrified blade?

Eventually, the person in question came into view. It was a little difficult to see who it was due to the fact that there was not much light illuminating the school, but the person appeared to be wearing a dark green heavy jacket, with a badge showing some type of shield-like logo attached on the upper right portion of his jacket, near the base of his neck. He wore dark green gloves donned the same logo on the back. He also wore dark green pants, with a gold belt around his waist, with a belt buckle that also donned the logo. He was also wearing shoulder pads that looked to be made out of pure emerald, connected to a cape that extended down to his waist. He wore knee pads and shin-high boots that also looked like they were made out of pure emerald.

The girls didn't recognize him at first, until they noticed his short green hair and green chinstrap beard. Seiko gasped in surprise. **"Packer…?" **Seiko called out softly.

* * *

Packer was starting to get a little bit frustrated. He had been walking around for what seemed like an eternity, but he couldn't seem to locate any of his friends. He eventually found himself on the bottom floor, where he finally located the exit. _'Well, at least I know where the front door is.'_ He was about to walk toward it when he heard a familiar voice call out to him from the stairwell.

**"Packer…?"** He froze, and slowly turned toward the stairwell, where Seiko and Naomi were standing.

**"Seiko, Naomi, thank God you guys are okay!" **he said as he resheathed Shiden.

"**Packer!" **Seiko yelled as she ran up to him and engulfed him in a giant hug. **"Oh, I've missed you so much!"**

Packer smiled as he wrapped his arms around Seiko's waist. **"I've missed you, too," **he replied. He looked up and noticed Naomi walking toward them with a slight limp. **"You okay, Naomi?" **he asked.

**"Sort of. I think I might've twisted or sprained my ankle, but I'm not sure," **she replied.

**"Hm. Well, I guess we'll have to try to find the infirmary and take care of that. Putting pressure on an injured ankle for an extended period of time is not a good idea, so we'll need to make that one of our top priorities," **Packer said.

Seiko would've been content on staying in his arms, but she was reminded of something, and she released her grip on him, as she stepped back to take in his changed appearance. **"Um, Packer, why are you wearing those clothes, and why are you carrying a sword?" **she asked with curiosity.

Packer sighed. He knew he'd have to answer this question one day, and since they were now stuck in this school, there was no use in holding it back any longer. **"The reason is… I'm not your average teenager, so to speak," **Packer began.

**"What do you mean?" **Naomi asked, her curiosity now peaked.

"**I am a part of an organization known as the Covenant, a group of warriors with superior fighting abilities and supernatural powers. The warriors are known as the Knights of the Covenant, and I am a part of that fraternity as its most prominent member. I was discovered by the Covenant at a very young age, whilst I was bouncing from orphanage to orphanage, trying to find a permanent home. They saw great potential in me, so they recruited me into their ranks, where I worked my way up to become an Elite Knight, one of the highest ranks a member of the Covenant could reach."**

Naomi and Seiko listened as Packer explained who his true self was, still not believing that Packer was more than what they had originally believed.

"**Several months ago, before I even came to Japan, I started having nightmares, but I soon learned that these were no ordinary nightmares. They were premonitions, which came to me as a result of a side effect from my Future Sight."** Seiko tilted her head in confusion.

**"Future Sight?" **she repeated.

"**A special ability I possess that allows me to see flashes of future events, usually dangerous events seconds before they actually occur, giving me a chance to react and prevent the event from happening. You saw a sample of that before we ended up here," **Packer explained.

Seiko and Naomi remembered that Packer had experienced two episodes of his Future Sight back in their homeroom before they were sent here: One before the earthquake, and again before they were swallowed by a massive hole, which resulted in them being trapped within the walls of this school.

"**My superiors sent me here with one simple mission: Bring the Nine back alive," **Packer finished.

"**The Nine? What do mean?" **Naomi asked.

**"The nine people of Kisaragi Academy who performed the Sachiko Ever After ritual and were sent to this school, known as Heavenly Host Elementary," **Packer replied.

**"Wait, isn't that the same school from class rep's scary story?" **Seiko asked.

"**Yes, but it's no fairy tale. If the ritual is messed up somehow, the people who took part in it are brought here to this Godforsaken school against their will. Knowing this, I came to Japan, and infiltrated under the guise of an American exchange student to gain your trust. It was really supposed to be a simple mission, but as time went on, I realized what a wonderful group of friends you all were to me, so I guess you could say… I've got a personal stake in this mission now," **Packer admitted.

Seiko thought for a moment, and then frowned at Packer as something occurred to her.

**"Wait a minute. If you knew this was gonna happen, why didn't you warn us about this in the first place? Or better yet, why didn't you prevent us from being sent here at all?!" **Seiko asked in frustration. Seriously, if Packer had the information already, why didn't he take any action to prevent this from happening?

"**Two main reasons: One, preventing the ritual from happening would've resulted in severe damage to the space-time continuum, so I was unable to take any action as a result. Two, honestly, would any of you have believed me?" **Packer asked.

The girls looked at each other, and then turned back and shook their heads.

**"I didn't think so," **Packer said. **"Well, now that we've got that out of the way, what do you say we find the others and get the hell out of here?" **He turned and began walking toward the exit, with the girls in tow.

As they approached the exit, they noticed the various shoes lying all over the floor near the cubicles.

**"Such tiny shoes…" **Seiko muttered.

**"It's like you said, Packer. This place was an elementary school," **Naomi said.

**"Yeah…" **Packer replied softly. Seiko sighed sadly.

**"Yuu and the others must be getting hungry by now," **she said, worry in her voice. Packer looked at her with concern.

**"I take it your father's working late tonight?"** he asked.

**"Yep. After all, it isn't easy feeding all those mouths, you know. And while Dad's working hard, I get to be the housewife! Heh heh heh…" **Seiko giggled. Packer flashed a smile at her, while Naomi stared at her best friend in amazement.

**"That's amazing, Seiko! You're like a high school mom, in a way," **she said.

Seiko's face turned pink at Naomi's compliment. **"Heh, I'm not really sure how to feel about that. But, it's what I have to do. After all, it's just my dad and I that takes care of them," **she replied.

**"Hm… Whatever happened to your mother, Seiko?" **Packer asked. Seiko's expression quickly turned sad at that.

**"She disappeared… two years ago. Nobody knows what happened or why she disappeared…" **she said sadly.

**"Oh, I'm sorry, Seiko. It must be a pretty sensitive subject for you to talk about," **Packer said, feeling guilty about opening an old wound. He couldn't imagine what she went through after her mother disappeared, considering he never had any parents to begin with.

"**It's all right, Packer. At any rate, I need to get back home as soon as possible. I'm sure it's the same for you, Naomi. Your mother must be waiting at home for you, as well," **Seiko said.

**"Hm, I wonder if she's worried about me," **Naomi muttered.

**"I'm sure she is. I'm sure Mochida-kun is worried about you as well. Ah, he might even be waiting for you outside!" **Seiko claimed with a grin. Packer face palmed, all the while trying to hold back a smile.

_'It seems like Seiko is trying to get Naomi to open up to Satoshi, much like I'm trying to get Satoshi to open up to Naomi. If only we weren't stuck in this hellhole…' _Packer thought. Naomi glared at Seiko, cheeks flaring.

**"Dang it, Seiko, that doesn't matter right now!" **she yelled.

**"**_**Naomi and Satoshi sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!**_**"** Seiko said in a singsong voice, laughing as she walked toward the exit. Naomi growled in aggravation at Seiko's teasing, while Packer tried to hold back from laughing.

The girls each grabbed a handle on the double doors.

**"We'll go on three, okay?" **Seiko asked.

**"Right," **Naomi replied.

**"One, two, three!" **They pulled on the handles, but the doors didn't budge. **"Huh?" **Both girls then grabbed with both hands and tried pulling the doors open, but they still wouldn't budge.

**"Watch out," **Packer warned. The girls stood back as Packer took a running start and tried to jump kick the doors, but even then, the doors didn't move an inch. Packer sighed in frustration.

"**Well, shit. Looks like we aren't getting out this way," **he sighed.

**"So close, and yet so far. Looks like we'll have to find another way out," **Seiko said.

**"Let's head back the way we came and check the other direction. Maybe there's an emergency exit we could use," **Naomi suggested.

**"Good idea, and maybe we'll find the infirmary along the way. Let's go," **Packer agreed. All three turned heel and began walking back up the steps to the second floor.

* * *

They passed by the room the girls first came out of, and when they rounded the corner, they saw that the floor was caved in, preventing any more progress.

**"Crap! Where are we supposed to go now?" **Seiko asked. Packer looked to his left and noticed a door to another classroom. It appeared to be slightly open.

**"Let's check that room out," **he said. He walked up to the door and forced it open.

The room was darker than the hallway, prompting Packer to retrieve a flashlight from his uniform. He flashed it around the room, and noticed a second door on the other side. **"Looks like we'll be able to bypass the hole in the hallway if we use that door," **Packer said. **"Be careful, girls. It's a little hard to see in here."**

They began to walk carefully across the room, which looked very similar to the ones they woke up in. As her eyes began to adjust to the darkness of the room, Naomi glanced over on the floor next to the wall, and gasped at what she saw.

**"AAAH!" **She stopped in her tracks and clasped her hands over her mouth. Packer looked back at her in confusion.

**"What's wrong?" **he asked. Mortified, she pointed over toward the wall.

**"O-O-Over there… n-next to the w-wall…" **she stuttered.

Seiko looked over to where Naomi was pointing. Her eyes widened in horror. **"YAAAAAAAGH!" **she screamed. **"Wh… why… why is there a dead person here?!"**

A skeleton, with bleached white bones, was sprawled out on the floor next to the wall. Packer carefully walked up to the corpse, taking a knee beside it. **"No question about it. This is someone's corpse, and judging by the rate of decay, he's been here for quite some time," **he said with apprehension. The question now swimming through Packer's mind was how or why he died.

**"Oh, my God! This can't be happening!" **Seiko shouted, her mind racing with fear.

**"Seiko, calm down!" **Naomi yelled, although she was pretty mortified herself. Packer continued examining the corpse for any signs as to why he had died, when suddenly…

"_**You three…"**_

Packer froze as he heard the strange voice, as did Seiko and Naomi. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a blue flame appeared above the corpse. **"What the…?!" **Packer shouted, startled by the flame's sudden appearance. Instinct caused him to reach back and grasp the handle of his sword.

_**"Stay your hand. I do not mean you any harm…" **_the flame said.

Packer arched an eyebrow. _'Wait, this flame is talking to us?' _Packer thought.

_**"You three are new victims, are you not?"**_ the flame asked.

Seiko's face was pure white. She was completely mortified. **"A g-g-ghost!" **she stammered. Naomi was scared as well, but she worked up the courage to ask the ghost a question.

**"Wh-wh-who are you?" **

"**His name is Yoshiyuki Shinohara, Misato Municipal Brotherhood Senior High School, Class 3-4. At least, that's what it says on his name badge," **Packer said.

**"Shinohara? Do you know him, Seiko?" **Naomi asked.

**"N-No. He must be from a different Shinohara family," **Seiko replied.

"_**I was brought here against my will and confined, just like you," **_the spirit explained.

**"Where exactly is 'here'? Do you know something about this place?" **Naomi inquired.

"_**Yes. This forsaken place is a cursed, multidimensional nexus, multiple planes of existence, all piled on top of one another, and created by powerful, vengeful spirits. A 'closed space', if you will, or perhaps, 'closed spaces' is a more proper term. You, and we as well, are the unlucky victims of an inescapable abduction. And it seems you three are not the only ones to have been brought here. I'm sensing numerous others, as well," **_the spirit continued.

"**So our friends are here as well?" **Seiko asked.

_**"It seems that way. Altogether, I sense ten of you were pulled into this school. The others seemed to be pulled into these spaces at the same time as you. They are definitely in this school," **_the spirit replied.

"**Great. So all we need to do is find them and together, we can get the hell out of here," **Packer remarked. However, what the spirit said next would throw a massive monkey wrench into their plans.

"_**However, you cannot meet them."**_

Packer looked up at the spirit, his eyes narrowed. **"Wait, what? What do you mean we can't meet them?!" **he yelled.

"_**Your friends are definitely in this school, but the space they occupy differs from the space we occupy, making it impossible for you to meet face to face. If you wish to see your friends, you must find some means of entering their space, or bringing them into this space. Even then, escape is virtually impossible, but at least you'd be able to die together…"**_

Seiko gasped in horror. **"Oh, God, is there no way out of this place, then?" **she shuddered.

**"Bullshit. There **_**has**_** to be a way out of this school. We just need to find it," **Packer retorted. He refused to believe that an exit was not possible. Otherwise, he wouldn't have received these visions and premonitions if there wasn't a way to prevent them from happening.

"**Wait a second. You said we were brought here by vengeful spirits, right? Who are they, and why did they bring us here?" **Naomi asked.

"_**I don't know… Neither the motives of our captors, nor a means of escaping this hell, but all I know is that with some effort on your part, you can at least live out your days together, in the same space, and that in and of itself is a fate worth fighting for."**_

Packer clinched his fist, a new determination forming on his face. **"I can think of another fate worth fighting for, and that's getting out of here alive, with everyone. I made a vow that I would keep that promise, and by God, I intend to keep that promise," **he said with confidence. The girls looked at him, amazed at the determination he seemed to possess.

"_**Hm. Perhaps you might be the one to break the vicious cycle of this school. Hopefully, you'll be able to maintain that level of determination for as long as you can. Three heads are better than one. Your chances, and your opportunities, are so much greater when working together. Do whatever you can to find a way out of here. Don't end up… like us…"**_

"**Don't worry. We don't intend to," **Packer responded.

"_**Also, be very careful. If you die in this place, you will feel the pain you felt at the moment of death for all eternity."**_

Naomi and Seiko gasped at that. Pain at the moment of death… for all eternity? They certainly didn't like the sound of that.

**"All the more reason for us to find a way out of here," **Packer interjected.

Suddenly, the door behind them opened. Everyone turned toward it, confused. **"Huh? Who opened the door?" **Naomi wondered out loud. Then, they heard the spirit gasp.

"_**No…!"**_

They turned to see that the spirit had disappeared.

**"Huh? What was he so spooked about?" **Packer asked. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted another blue figure, this time near the teacher's podium.

**"Who's there?" **he declared. The girls looked at what Packer was staring at and gasped. Staring back at them was the spirit of what appeared to be a little girl in a red dress. She had long black hair that extended down to her waist, her eyes were devoid of any color, and she was emitting the same ethereal blue glow that the previous spirit had.

The girl stared at them for a minute, and then, out of the depths of her diaphragm, came a sickly moan, accompanied by blood spilling from her mouth and eyes. Frightened by the sight, Naomi and Seiko screamed and turned to run in the opposite direction. Naomi stumbled as her injured foot gave out, and she fell right into Seiko. Seiko landed on her back, with Naomi on top of her.

Packer rushed over to help them. **"You girls okay?" **he asked.

**"Ow, my foot…!" **Naomi cried, clutching her injured ankle. As Seiko shook the cobwebs from her head, she looked up and noticed that the little girl was slowly coming toward them. She gasped as the girl gave a wide-eyed, ice cold stare that sent shivers down Seiko's spine. She grabbed Naomi's arm and pulled her roughly to her feet.

**"We need to get out of here, Naomi!" **she shouted. She practically dragged Naomi out of the classroom, not realizing in her haste that she had dropped her charm scrap.

Fortunately, Packer had noticed and knelt down to pick it up as the girls rushed out of the room. **"Seiko, Naomi, wait!" **he shouted, but the girls were already out of the classroom.

He sensed a presence behind him. He turned to see the little girl staring at him, almost as if she was trying to look into his soul. The way she was looking at him made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He promptly reached back and pulled Shiden from its sheath, his senses now on full alert.

The two of them stared at each other for what seemed like an hour, but was probably only a few minutes.

**"Who are you, little girl?" **Packer finally asked. The girl looked at him and smiled, which certainly didn't sit well with the green-haired young man.

**"I'm a spirit of this school. I'm quite surprised you're not scared of me, unlike those girls earlier," **the girl responded. **"Even boys have run at the sight of me. What makes you so different?"**

"**I'm not your ordinary boy," **Packer responded. The girl laughed at his response.

**"Well, that's good, because this place is inherently dangerous. You've seen the body of that boy over there. You will encounter many more in this school before you are done. Try to take care that you and those girls don't end up like them," **the girl warned. Before Packer could question her further, she vanished into thin air. Packer frowned. _'She seems to know more than she's letting on…' _he thought. Shaking the thoughts from his head, he pocketed Seiko's charm scrap and ran out of the classroom to catch up with them.

He found them sitting next to the wall not far from the classroom door. **"You girls okay?" **he asked. Naomi looked up at him, still breathing heavy.

**"Yeah, but that scared the living crap out of us," **she gasped.

**"What was that? It had such terrifying eyes," **Seiko choked out.

**"I don't know, but she warned me that we may see more corpses in this place, and that the school is a very dangerous place to be. We should definitely keep our eyes open," **Packer said.

He noticed that Naomi was clutching her foot, pain registering on her face. **"How bad is your foot, Naomi?" **he asked with concern.

**"Ugh, it's really hurting me. I guess when I tried to run in the classroom, I made it even worse," **she said, pain evident in her voice. Seiko stared at Packer oddly, noting for the first time that Packer had used Naomi's first name.

**"So, first name basis with Naomi now, eh Packer?" **she inquired with a grin. Packer just looked at her and shrugged.

**"In this situation, formalities aren't really that important," **he replied.

He offered a hand to Naomi. She took it, and Packer pulled her up to a standing position. **"I really think it's time we find that infirmary. We can't have your foot get any worse than it already is," **he said.

**"Right. Let's go," **Naomi agreed. She knew they'd have to go back into that classroom, but she was prepared to do so as long as Seiko and Packer were with her.

Seiko got back on her feet, and the three of them walked back into the classroom together. They made it to the door on the other side, not noticing that the chalkboard was now plastered with the drawing of little kids and an adult with scissors. Did the little girl draw those pictures on the chalkboard?

* * *

**Author's Note: **I know these chapters are coming along rather slowly, but blame my work schedule. I've hardly had any time to devote to this story as it is. But don't fret. The next chapter will be coming real soon, I promise. ;)


	7. Chapter 7: Walls of Crimson

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

* * *

_**CHAPTER 7: WALLS OF CRIMSON**_

Packer, Naomi, and Seiko continued down the hallway, until they came across another room with the door wide open. The sign above the door read "Classroom 3-A".

"**Hm, the door's open. You think we outta check in there?" **Packer asked. Naomi shuddered involuntarily.

"**I don't know. I've got a bad feeling about this room," **she replied.

"**Oh, come on. It can't be all that bad," **Seiko replied.

Seiko immediately regretted saying that when they stepped into the room. Another corpse was lying in the middle of the room, causing Seiko to gasp.

"**Ugh… another dead body…" **Naomi muttered. Packer walked up and knelt beside it.

"**Hm, there doesn't seem to be a name tag or any kind of identification whatsoever. It's not from our group, that much is certain," **Packer said. He looked to the side and noticed something written on the floor. It looked like the now deceased person wrote this message into the floorboard with their fingernails. **"It says, 'Whatever you do, don't look at the newspaper.' What newspaper?" **Packer wondered out loud.

He glanced up at Seiko and Naomi, and noticed that Seiko had already picked up the newspaper the message was referring to. **"Seiko, Naomi, don't read that paper!" **he shouted.

"**Relax, Packer. It's just an old newspaper. No harm could come from taking a peek at it," **Seiko replied.

"**Let's see," **Naomi read, **"It says, 'Breaking News: Serial Kidnapping Ends in Murder. The good name of Heavenly Host Elementary School has been stained in blood today as horrific details on the recent wave of disappearances are revealed. Over the past month, numerous children have gone missing within the town, and authorities quickly turned to kidnapping as the most likely explanation. Now investigators have located the whereabouts of these children, and their findings are far worse than anyone could've anticipated. The bodies of the absconded youths were discovered within the Heavenly Host Elementary School building on September 18****th****, 1973 at around 7:00 PM. Authorities further revealed that a male instructor from the school was found with them, alive but near-catatonic, holding a pair of bloodied scissors. Each of the corpses appeared to have had its tongue severed and removed… Crap, the rest of the page is missing."**

"**So a teacher was responsible for murdering children back in the early 70's at this school, eh? Damn, that's sick," **Packer said, shaking his head in disgust.

"**How awful," **Naomi muttered.

"**I think I've heard of this story, a long time ago," **Seiko said.

"**Well, at any rate, it looks like we've found everything of importance in here. Let's get out of here and continue out search for the others," **Packer said.

However, just as they began moving toward the door…

_**SLAM!**_

The door slammed shut on its own. **"What the…?!" **Seiko exclaimed. She ran up to the door and tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge. It almost seemed like it was fixed into the wall, like a decoration.

"**It won't open!" **Seiko shouted.

Naomi glanced back at the paper, and gasped as she noticed that its contents had changed. **"Oh, my God…" **Naomi shuddered.

"**What?"** Packer asked.

"**Look at the newspaper…" **Naomi squeaked out. Packer and Seiko glanced at the paper and gasped.

_Heavenly Post: You will never leave this room._

"**Oh, you've gotta be shitting me," **Packer muttered. He ran over to the wall and tried kicking it several times, but with no luck. He growled in frustration. **"Damn it! Open up, you piece of crap!"**

"**Ooohhh, we're trapped! What do we do? What do we do?!" **Seiko stuttered out.

"**This is your fault, you know!" **Naomi said.

"**Wait, how's it my fault?!" **Seiko shot back.

"**Ooohhh, never mind!" **Naomi shouted.

"**Arguing isn't gonna get us anywhere, ladies," **Packer said. _'Man, I really don't want to showcase my supernatural powers to the girls, but I might not have a choice if this door refuses to open.' _Just as he was contemplating powering up an attack, the room suddenly brightened a little bit, and the door opened by itself. **"Hey, the door's open!" **Packer shouted. All three quickly rushed from the room.

Once they were back out in the hallway, the girls leaned up against the wall, sighing in relief. **"Jeez, that scared the living crap out of me!" **Seiko sighed.

"**You're not kidding," **Naomi agreed.

"**Seems like the spirits of this school really like to screw with its inhabitants," **Packer said.

Seiko dug her hands into her pockets, only to realize that something was missing. **"What…? Oh, no. No! It's gone!" **she shouted.

"**What is?" **Naomi asked.

"**The paper doll scrap I got from Ayumi-Chan!" **Seiko shouted.

"**Oh, you mean the charm? I've got mine in my student ID holder," **Naomi replied. Seiko buried her head in her hands.

"**Ohhhh, I put mine in my pocket. It must've fallen out somewhere…" **she muttered sadly.

"**I keep telling you, Seiko. You need to put things away before they get lost," **Naomi said. Seiko was on the verge of breaking down.

"**Now I'm sad…" **she whispered, tears forming in her eyes.

"**Don't worry about it." **Seiko and Naomi looked up at Packer. With a smile, he presented Seiko's doll scrap. **"I picked it up when you dropped it running from that girl in the red dress earlier. I'll hold onto it for safe keeping. I have a feeling we'll need these scraps later on," **he said. He grunted as Seiko threw herself at him, enveloping him in a big hug.

"**Ohhhh, thank you, Packer! I thought I had lost my scrap forever!" **she squealed in delight. Packer chuckled.

"**It's no big deal. Now, what do you say we move on and try to locate that infirmary?" **he suggested.

"**Sounds good to me," **Naomi said.

Seiko put Naomi's arm back around her shoulders, and the trio of friends continued down the hallway.

* * *

As they continued to walk through the halls of the school, Packer suddenly froze, as if he felt something or someone watching them. He spun around and looked behind him, but there was no one to be seen. _'Weird, I could've sworn I sensed something…'_

His thoughts were broken when he heard the girls scream.

"_**OH, GOD! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"**_ Seiko screamed. Packer immediately ran up to them.

"**What's wrong?!" **he asked. He rounded the corner, and was brought to a halt by a horrific sight, his eyes as big as baseballs. Naomi clamped her hand over her mouth to keep from vomiting.

Blood was splattered across the wall, as if someone had thrown a can of paint at the vertical surface. Small clumps of flesh were still slowly sliding down the wall now bathed in crimson. Red liquid painted the floor, pooling around the mangled parts of flesh. Organs had violently burst, leaking their contents and mixing with the sea of blood and viscera. Fragments of bone, many with crude remnants of muscles and ligaments clinging to the surface, lay scattered amid the remains. Torn scraps of fabric and fibers were soaked in the crimson ocean. The disgusting smell was overpowering.

"**Oh, God…" **Packer choked out. He had seen mutilated corpses before in his career as a Knight of the Covenant, but he had never seen one so completely pulverized like the one that lay in front of them. **"It's horrible. What in God's name could've done this?" **he wondered out loud.

"**It's almost like… this person was thrown from the other end of the hall… at superhuman speed… and just splattered everywhere," **Seiko said, holding a hand to her mouth.

"**Superhuman… or supernatural. Did the spirits of this school do this?" **Packer asked.

"**I don't know, but I don't want to stay here any longer than we have to," **Naomi gasped, on the verge of losing her lunch. Packer looked back and nodded.

"**Right. Let's keep going," **he said. The three continued down the hall, away from the pulverized corpse, not realizing that it was the corpse of one of their own…

Just down the hall, they came to another door. Above it, there was sign telling them what room it was.

"**Well, we found the infirmary," **Packer said. He tried to open the door, but it wouldn't move. Unlike before, the door seemed to have some give to it. **"It's locked. We need to find a key," **he sighed in frustration.

"**Do you know where it could be?" **Naomi asked. Packer could only shrug.

"**Well, that sucks. Let's keep going. We'll come back if we happen to find the key," **Seiko replied. Packer nodded, and the three of them continued down the hall.

Eventually, the trio came to the third floor bathrooms. Seiko's face was red as she turned to Naomi.

"**H-Hey, Naomi?** Seiko suddenly asked. Naomi glanced over at her.

"**Hm? Yes, Seiko?"** Naomi asked.

"**Do you have any of that ass medicine on you, by any chance? You know, the smeary stuff?" **Seiko asked shyly. Packer gave Seiko a weird look, as did Naomi.

"**Again?! Can't it wait until we get outside?" **Naomi replied.

"**Well, I would, but my butt's been drier than a desert since we got here," **Seiko admitted, face red as a tomato. Packer could only blink at Seiko's bluntness. Naomi sighed and reached into her pocket.

"**Well, I've got some antibacterial cream, if that'll work," **she said, pulling out a small tube of cream and handing it to Seiko.

"**Ohhhh, thank you, Naomi! Well then, I'm gonna go slick up the entrance a bit!" **Seiko proclaimed, walking into the girl's restroom.

Naomi sighed with embarrassment, while Packer could only shake his head.

"**Jeez, Seiko, do you have any shame at all?" **Naomi muttered to herself.

"**Yay!" **came Seiko's voice from the bathroom, causing Naomi to face palm in response. Packer glanced over at Naomi.

"**Apparently not… at least, not when we're around," **Packer laughed. Naomi let out a giggle as well.

"**That's true," **she said with a smile.

After a minute or two, Seiko emerged from the bathroom.

"**Sorry for the wait!" **she said, handing the cream back to Naomi.

"**Well, what should we do now?" **Packer asked.

"**Well…" **Seiko began, reaching into her pocket and pulling out what looked like a key. **"We could try going back to the infirmary and seeing if this key fits. I found it in the restroom," **she said. Packer took the key and examined it. The word "Infirmary" was faintly written on it.

"**Perfect. Let's head back there now. It's about time we got Naomi's ankle taken care of," **he said. _'Although, I wonder why the key was in the girl's restroom to begin with…'_

* * *

The girls watched as Packer slipped the key into the lock and turned it. There was a click, and Packer slid the door to the infirmary open. Bright light poured out of the room. **"Wow, this room's still got lights. That's a bit of a surprise," **he observed.

Naomi sat down on one of the beds, which were surprisingly clean, while Seiko walked over to the cabinets, scrounging through them for supplies. **"Ah, here we go," **she said. She walked back over with a piece of wood and some bandages. **"All right, now hold still. That sprain's gonna be gone before you know it," **she said.

Packer watched as Seiko wrapped Naomi's ankle with the makeshift splint and the bandages she found. **"There we go. How does it feel?" **Seiko asked as she finished wrapping Naomi's ankle. Naomi tested it, and found that the pain had subsided quite a bit.

"**It feels a lot better. Thanks!" **Naomi responded gratefully.

"**It'd be better if we had some ice or something cold to put on it," **Seiko replied.

Packer arched an eyebrow. Technically, he had something 'cold' they could use on Naomi's ankle, but it involved the use of his powers, and Packer was still not completely comfortable showing his supernatural talents to the girls just yet.

"**Thanks a lot, Seiko. You're a lifesaver," **Naomi said with a smile.

"**No problem," **Seiko beamed back.

The girls were resting on the infirmary beds, while Packer was sitting on the floor next to the beds. Naomi was absentmindedly staring at her piece of the charm scrap.

"**Hey, Naomi?" **Seiko asked.

"**Hmm?" **Naomi muttered, glancing over at Seiko.

"**If we find Mochida-kun, have you thought about what you want to do with him?" **Seiko asked, grinning like a Cheshire cat. Packer couldn't resist holding back a smile, and Naomi's face turned red at Seiko's inquiry.

"**W-What do you mean?" **Naomi asked.

"**Well, when two people are faced with difficult situations, it often leads to sweet, sweet love!" **Seiko gushed. Packer broke out in a small chuckle, as Naomi's face turned several shades of red.

"**I-It's not funny, Packer!" **she shouted.

"**Sorry, Naomi," **Packer apologized, although the smile was still on his face. **"But I think it is." **Naomi groaned.

"**You know what, Naomi? You should well up all your courage and confess your feelings to him!" **Seiko exclaimed. **"You'd get all girly with him in this creepy place, and you'll be so cute in his eyes, I bet he'd confess his feelings for you, too!" **Naomi felt her heart leap up into her throat, and she was sure her face was red from ear to ear.

Packer continued to silently chuckle at their conversation. **"I doubt Satoshi would have the balls to do that, Seiko," **he chuckled.

Naomi frowned for a moment, before suddenly busting out in laughter. **"I swear, you two, it almost feels like we're just shooting the breeze back at school, just like old times," **she giggled.

"**I kind of wish we were right now, instead of being stuck in this hellhole," **Packer admitted.

"**Indeed," **Seiko agreed.

Naomi took a deep breath, reflecting on what Seiko had said. **"Thanks for your advice, Seiko. I'll think about it," **she said.

That made Packer glance at her in surprise. _'She'll think about it? Does that mean she actually has feelings for Satoshi? That she feels the same way he does?'_ he thought silently to himself.

"**Heh, I hope we find Mochida-kun soon," **Seiko said.

"**Yeah…" **Naomi responded wistfully.

They remained silent for a few minutes, until Packer suddenly felt the hairs on his neck stand up again. He felt something strange, like the air in the room had suddenly changed. **"Naomi, Seiko, do you feel that?" **he asked, perturbed. The girls glanced down at him.

"**Feel what, Packer?" **Seiko asked.

"**The air… it feels… different. Heavier… I really don't think it's a good idea to remain in here any longer," **Packer replied. Naomi and Seiko glanced at each other, confusion and nervousness mixed on their faces.

Suddenly, they heard a clang of a clock's chime, and the lights in the infirmary went dark. Their eyes widened in horror, especially when they realized something else. **"What the…? I can't move!" **Packer gasped.

"**I can't either!" **Naomi yelped.

"**Me either! It's like we've been paralyzed or something!" **Seiko gasped.

The lamp over on the desk suddenly turned on, and the sounds of a ball-point pen writing on paper emanated from that direction. The girls tried to glance over in that direction, fear running up and down their spines. Packer, from his position, could actually see the pen moving, but there was no one to be seen. **"What the hell's going on?!" **Packer exclaimed.

They all collectively gasped as a voice emanated throughout the room. _'Once summer break starts, let's all take a trip together.' _ Blood began to seep out from the cracks in the walls, turning them a deep, dark crimson. Bloody handprints began appearing on the cabinet doors, slowly at first, and then faster and faster.

Packer could hear the girls whimpering in horror, and he tried desperately to break free of the paralysis that was gripping him. _'God! Whatever this force is, it's more powerful than anything I've ever felt before. But where is it coming from?!' _he thought feverently.

He quickly got his answer as they suddenly heard the scraping sound of something moving across the floorboard. All three gasped as they glanced in the direction of the sound. The wooden chair, once sitting in front of the desk, was moving slowly in their direction. It stopped in front of the infirmary beds, where the girls were laying, quaking in fear.

'_Sacchan… Did you come to pick me up?'_

Out of nowhere, a purplish mist began to form in front of the chair. It eventually began to take on a human-like shape. The girls gasped in terror as a pair of eyes opened on the ghostly figure, almost as if it was gazing with an ice cold stare into their souls.

'_Sacchan… Sacchan… Sacchan…'_

Packer's eyes widened in horror as the purple mist began to float menacingly over them. **"Oh, shit…" **he choked out.

The dark cloud settled over Naomi and Seiko, and it began to force its way into their mouths. The girls began choking, finding it difficult to breathe as the mist forced its way down their throats. They felt their consciousness begin to slip away.

Packer gasped as he heard the sounds of the girls choking. _'Damn, it sounds like that thing's trying to suffocate them!' _He closed his eyes, as he tried to focus all of his energy on breaking free from the paralysis that this thing seemed to have on them. _'But I'll be damned if I'm gonna let that happen!'_

Letting out an anguished scream, he suddenly broke free of the creature's paralyzing hold. Thinking fast, a glass dagger appeared in his hand, and he quickly thrust it up toward the wall above the girls. A split second after sticking to the blood-soaked wall, the dagger unleashed the spell contained within, sending a blinding light throughout the entire room. The dark cloud seemed to screech with an inhuman agony as the light encompassed its entire being. It vanished, leaving just the girls and Packer alone in the room.

The girls sat up, coughing as precious oxygen returned to their lungs. Packer quickly jumped to his feet and rushed over to them. **"You girls alright?" **he asked, concerned.

After taking a few much needed breaths, both girls nodded. **"Yeah, we're okay," **Naomi croaked out. Seiko could only nod her head in agreement.

"**I don't know what the hell that thing was, but it's pretty clear that we're not safe in this room anymore. We need to get the hell out of here ASAP!" **Packer yelled.

Seiko looked past Packer and screamed. **"**_**AAAAGH! IT'S BACK!"**_ she shouted. Packer spun around and gasped. The malevolent spirit had rematerialized near the back of the room. Blood seemed to be pouring from its eyes as they narrowed at them.

"**You've gotta be kidding me…" **Packer growled.

In a panic, Naomi got up off the bed and grabbed the chair. She picked it up and heaved it at the ghost with all her might. The chair went right through it and smashed against the wall. Naomi gasped in horror as her attack had failed, while Packer arched an eyebrow. **"Yeah, I didn't expect that would work," **he said bluntly.

"**W-What do we do?" **Seiko gasped.

"**You girls run for the exit. I'll take care of this," **Packer responded.

"**But, Packer…" **Seiko began tearfully.

"**Don't argue with me, Seiko! Just go!" **Packer shouted.

Seiko was on the verge of tears, but nodded, and she and Naomi made a beeline for the exit. However, they were stopped in their tracks when they realized that their escape route was cut off.

The door was wrapped in hundreds of strands of hair. **"What? Why is the door wrapped in hair?!" **Seiko shouted.

"**I don't know, but we don't have time to think about it! Help me get it off the door!" **Naomi yelled. They began grabbing strands of the hair and ripping them off the door.

Meanwhile, Packer was facing off with the dark spirit. He leaped out of the way as the ghost tried to grab him, and he responded by throwing several glass daggers in its direction. They detonated right on top of the ghost, covering it in a fiery veil, but it seemed to have no effect on it. In response, the ghost ripped one of the cabinet doors off and sent it flying at superhuman speed back at Packer. It nailed him in the chest and knocked him off his feet.

The spirit then turned its attention towards Naomi and Seiko, who were still trying to remove the hair from the door. **"Uggghhh, it's no use! There's just too much hair wrapped around this door!" **Seiko shouted.

'_Where are you going, Sacchan?' _

Hearing the voice, the girls turned around and gasped. The malevolent spirit was staring right at them, just a few feet away.

'_Come over here…'_

The girls screamed in horror as the ghost began moving toward them.

Packer sat up as he shook the cobwebs from his head, and looked up with a start as he heard Naomi and Seiko scream. He gasped when he saw that the ghost was right on top of them. Realizing that their lives were in serious jeopardy, Packer knew he had no other choice.

'_I don't want to do this, but I have to protect them. All of them must make it out alive!'_

He growled as he leaped to his feet and called upon his supernatural powers for the first time since they arrived. Electricity began to flow through his hands and arms.

Naomi and Seiko were cowering in fear near the door, holding each other in their arms, awaiting their inevitable fate. But just as the spirit was going to grab them, Naomi and Seiko heard Packer shout out.

"_**THUNDERBOLT!"**_

Much to their shock, no pun intended, a bolt of lightning slammed into the back of the malevolent spirit, causing it to scream in agony. With a start, it whirled around and stared at the person who had caused it so much pain. Packer was standing on the other side of the room, his arms outstretched, electricity coursing up and down both of his arms. Both girls were stunned at the sight.

_'Wait, what? Packer can throw bolts of lightning?! What the hell is wrong with this picture?!' _Seiko thought.

"**Hey, asshole, leave the girls alone,"** Packer growled, motioning for the spirit to come at him.** "You want a piece of me? Come and get it."**

The spirit's eyes narrowed at Packer's challenge. _'I'm going to kill you…' _With venomous intent, it started moving toward the green haired warrior.

"**We'll see about that," **Packer spat back as he charged up another attack. _**"THUNDERBOLT!"**_

He pointed an arm at the malevolent spirit and launched another Thunderbolt attack. The streak of lightning struck the spirit in the arm. He raised his other arm and released another bolt, this time striking the spirit in the chest. The malicious cloud screamed as it launched itself at Packer, who dodged out of the way. It seemed that the lightning attacks were having little effect on the ghost, but Packer was well aware that his Thunderbolt was his weakest attack, and he was mainly using it as a distraction so that Naomi and Seiko could escape.

He glanced over at the girls, who were still struggling with the hair wrapped around the door.

"**What's taking you girls so long?!" **he shouted.

"**The door's wrapped in hair! We're having trouble getting it off!" **Naomi screamed.

'_Hair? Hm, maybe if we found something flammable to use on it…' _Packer's eyes glanced over at a nearby cabinet. Inside, he spied what appeared to be a glass bottle of rubbing alcohol. _'Ah-ha! Alcohol should do the trick!' _He ran over to the cabinet and grabbed the bottle of alcohol, and turned back to see the spirit lunge at him again. He moved out of the way as it crashed into the cabinet.

Knowing that he was going to need some time to power up the correct attack, Packer tucked the bottle into his uniform, charged up a different elemental attack and turned to face the angry spirit once more.

"_**ICE SPREADER!"**_

This time, he launched what appeared to be a baseball-sized ball of ice from his outstretched hands, and when it struck the spirit, it was suddenly engulfed in solid ice, almost like an ice coffin, freezing it in place. However, cracks were quickly beginning to appear in the ice, meaning that Packer didn't have much time to put his plan into effect before the ghost broke free of its icy prison. He quickly ran for the door to the infirmary.

"**Watch out, girls!" **Packer shouted. Naomi and Seiko stepped back as Packer launched the bottle of alcohol at the door. The bottle shattered, coating its flammable contents on the greasy hair-covered entrance.

Packer put his arms out to his sides, and then started bringing them together in front of him. As he was doing this, fire began to gather in his hands, seemingly out of thin air. The girls were mesmerized at sight, still not believing that their green haired friend was capable of such a feat. When Packer brought his hands together, the flames that he had gathered in each hand were merged into a massive fireball, roaring in his hands, seemingly begging for release.

"_**SACRED FIRE!"**_

After gathering the fireball's strength, Packer outstretched his arms at the door and launched a powerful Sacred Fire attack. The red hot sphere slammed into the hair-coated door, setting the threads ablaze and releasing the door from its grip. Packer ran up to the door and slid it open without much resistance.

"**Girls, let's move!" **he shouted.

Suddenly, the ice holding the spirit in place shattered, and it once again set its vengeance-filled gaze at the three trespassers. Not wasting any time, Naomi and Seiko ran out the door, with Packer following once the girls were safe.

Out in the hallway, the girls dropped to their knees, gasping for air, but thankful they managed to escape. However, their moment of glory was short lived.

"**Shit, it's still coming at us!" **Packer shouted.

The girls looked back and gasped. Indeed, the spirit was moving toward the door, anger flashing in its blood red eyes. The girls quickly got behind Packer, and Packer charged up another fireball, ready to release it at the creature, but then, the ghost stopped at the infirmary's entrance and just… stared at them.

"**W-What's it doing?" **Seiko stuttered out.

"**I have no idea," **Packer responded, still with a fireball at the ready. He was flabbergasted as to why the ghost had stopped at the doorway. Then, it once again spoke in that eerie voice…

'_I'm going to kill you. I'm going to kill you. I'm going to kill you…'_

It repeated those words several times before eventually fading away into the thick air. All that was left in the hallway were Seiko, Naomi, and Packer.

"**It's gone…" **Seiko whispered.

"**Yeah. I guess that ghost is a territorial one. It dwells from within the infirmary, but for what purpose?" **Packer wondered. The fireball disappeared from Packer's hands as he powered down his attack.

The stress and fear that had been building inside of Naomi had finally reached a breaking point. She bent over as she vomited, upchucking all the contents of her stomach onto the hardwood floor.

"**Naomi, are you okay?!" **Seiko exclaimed, rushing over to Naomi's side. Naomi looked up as soon as she was done vomiting and smiled at Seiko.

"**Yeah, I'll be alright," **Naomi responded, still feeling a little queasy. Seiko began rubbing Naomi's back in an effort to soothe her friend's sickness.

"**That feel better, Naomi?" **Seiko asked, continuing to rub Naomi's back.

"**Much. Thanks, Seiko," **Naomi replied.

After a minute or two, Naomi began to feel a little better, and with Seiko's help, rose back to her feet. Her mind was now racing with all sorts of questions, in particular, questions concerning their green haired friend.

"**Packer, you can summon fire, ice and lightning and use it against your opponents? How can you do that?" **Naomi asked.

"**Well, it's one of the main reasons I was recruited into the Covenant at a young age. I first discovered my powers when I was eight years old. A fireball randomly shot out of my hand, which scared the crap out of me and the foster parents who were looking out for me at the time," **Packer explained.** "When I was taken in by the Covenant, they ran some tests on me and discovered I had an unusual genetic code. It wasn't mutated, per se; it was altered slightly, but not through genetic science or anything like that. I had an extra Y-chromosome in my DNA, which allows me to utilize the elements for my own needs, not unlike many of the other Knights of the Covenant. However, I was an anomaly among anomalies." **

"**Wait, what do you mean by 'an anomaly among anomalies'?" **Seiko inquired.

"**The other Knights specialize in one particular element, depending on how their DNA is structured. However, in my case, I'm able to harness the power of several of the elements, namely fire, ice, lightning, wind, and light," **Packer continued.** "Needless to say, my supernatural prowess, as well as my martial arts skills, was one of the many reasons I quickly became the most prominent member of the Knights of the Covenant, and why they rely on me the most on missions such as this."**

**"Wait a second.** **You said you had to get all nine of us out alive. What exactly did you mean by that?" **Seiko asked.

"**In my premonition…" **Packer hesitated. He really didn't want to give more of the details of his premonition to the girls, but he really didn't see the use in withholding the information any longer. He sighed and continued on. **"My premonition revealed… that only two of the Nine made it out alive…" **Naomi and Seiko gasped. It looked like the color had been drained from their faces.

"**O-Only… two of us…?" **Seiko choked out. Naomi looked to be on the verge of breaking down.

"**Yeah, but that's not the worst part. The two that survived had suffered extensive psychological trauma from the incident, so much so that one of them committed suicide, and the other was committed to a mental institution," **Packer sighed, looking away from the girls. He damn sure wasn't going to mention that Naomi was the one committed to an asylum, while Ayumi hung herself in her bedroom, only days after escaping Heavenly Host.

Packer looked back at the girls, and he could see the overwhelming dread in their faces. **"But that's why I've come here to Japan, to prevent this from happening. If I don't bring the Nine out of this place alive, it will throw the fabric of the space-time continuum into a flux, and could cause the complete devastation of the entire Milky Way Galaxy. Why your lives are tied to this, even I don't have a clue. But my mission is clear, and I **_**will**_** succeed," **Packer said with determination.

"**But how will you be able to rescue the others if we can't get to their closed spaces?" **Naomi asked.

Packer frowned. That was the one massive wrinkle in his plan, and as it stood, he had no idea how to traverse to the other spaces. **"I don't know, but there has to be some way, I'm sure of it," **Packer retorted.

Suddenly, they heard a giggle coming from behind them. All three turned around and gasped. It was the little girl with the red dress, only now, she seemed to be emitting a purplish glow. She was staring at the group, a devilish smile on her face.

"**Crap, it's that girl spirit again!" **Seiko yelled.

Packer titled his head at the girl. **"Well, you certainly seem to have a knack for showing up unannounced, little lady," **he said.

"**What can I say? Call it a force of habit that I have," **the girl responded. **"I have to say, I'm impressed that you survived that encounter in the infirmary. But malicious spirits aren't the only dangers you're gonna face within this school."**

The sound of footsteps echoed down the hall. The group turned, and could see what appeared to be a group of human silhouettes approaching. As they got closer, their features became more defined. There were two boys and one girl, each wearing different colored uniforms corresponding to the school they were enrolled at. One boy had short, black hair, one had medium length red hair, and the girl had short blue hair. But the one defining feature they all had that caught Packer's attention was their eyes; their eyes were bloodshot and wide, almost as if they were crazed animals. Just like the girl spirit, they were emitting a purplish glow from their bodies.

"**W-Who are they?! **Seiko asked.

"**They are students, much like yourselves, that were brought here after they performed the Sachiko Ever After charm. Eventually, their minds broke down, and now, they've been taken over by the Darkening," **the girl explained.

"**The Darkening?" **Packer inquired.

"**Yes. The effects vary from person to person, but once someone succumbs to it, they become a shell of what they once were, and they only believe in one thing…"**

The girl smiled evilly once again.

"**Killing."**

The girl began cackling uncontrollably as she faded from sight. Packer turned back to see that the Darkening-laden students had now set their bloodshot gaze upon them. Seiko and Naomi began to shiver from the fear running through their bodies. One of the students cracked a sadistic smile and brought into view what appeared to be a tack hammer. The others were brandishing what appeared to be rusty butter knives. Packer's eyes narrowed, realizing that this group was out for blood. He reached back and pulled Shiden from its sheath.

"_**WE'RE GONNA KILL YOU! HAHAHAHAH!" **_the black haired student shouted.

"**We're not looking for a fight," **Packer retorted. **"But if you want one, then come get some!"**

With a collection of screams, the psychotic students charged at Naomi, Seiko, and Packer.


	8. Chapter 8: Unstoppable Force

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note: **This chapter will demonstrate just how powerful I think the spirits of Heavenly Host really are. Also, Epicman, I don't really know where you got the Mortal Kombat reference from, because I didn't have MK in mind when I was inspired to come up with this story. But the bottom line is, I'm not changing the context of the story. If you don't like it, don't read it. :/

As for the main inspiration for why I'm writing this story, I watched the Tortured Souls OVA, and quite frankly, I hated how episodes 3 & 4 turned out, not to mention the fact that the whole thing felt rushed to me. So it inspired me to get back into writing fan fiction, and now, here we are. :)

On a more serious note, **this chapter will contain character deaths. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.**

* * *

_**CHAPTER 8: UNSTOPPABLE FORCE**_

The three deranged students surrounded Packer as he gripped his electrified katana in his hands a little tighter. He remained calm and waited for them to make the first move. After a few tense moments, the black-haired student suddenly screamed and ran at Packer, raising his knife to pierce Packer in his chest.

Packer waited until the last possible second before sidestepping his opponent, grabbing his arm with his free hand and flipping him over on his back, knocking the wind out of him and his weapon out of his hand. The girl then tried to attack Packer from behind with her tack hammer, but he sensed her movement and spun around to face her, tossing a glass dagger in her direction. It sliced her across the top of the hand holding the hammer, causing her to drop it and clutch her hand in pain.

The red haired student jumped into the air and tried to stab Packer from above, but Packer reacted quickly once again and jumped into a back handspring, flipping several times away from his opponent. He landed on his feet and motioned for his adversaries to come at him. The psychotic students screamed in frustration and ran at Packer, who did likewise, but before he reached them, he jumped into a somersault, sailing over their heads. He did a half turn in midair, coming down on his feet facing their backs. Before the students could react, Packer had nailed one in the back of the head with the handle of his sword, and as the others were turning around, he knocked both of them to the ground with a devastating back roundhouse kick, catching both in the face in one motion.

Naomi and Seiko watched as Packer handled his opponents with relative ease. Even now, after he had told them about his martial arts skills, they were still amazed by what he could do. Hearing about it was one thing, but witnessing it with your own two eyes was something else entirely.

Packer expertly twirled Shiden in his hand as the maddened students struggled to get back to their feet.

"**You know, you guys can quit at any time," **Packer said to them. If at all possible, he really wanted to end this without bloodshed. The girl looked up at him, and there was no mistaking the murderous look he saw in her eyes.

"_**YOU ARROGANT FOOL! WE'LL NEVER STOP COMING FOR YOU UNTIL YOU'RE DEAD OR WE ARE!" **_she screamed. Packer's eyes narrowed at her declaration.

"**Well, ****if that's truly the case, then you leave me no choice," **Packer said gravely.

"**Packer, you can't be serious!" **Naomi yelled.

"**I'm deadly serious. It's us or them, Naomi. Which do you prefer?" **Packer shot back. Naomi simply couldn't comprehend one of her friends killing someone, let alone a group of people, but it was clear to her that these people were no longer sane, and they wouldn't stop until they had gotten what they were after. Naomi held onto Seiko's hand a little tighter, and Seiko did likewise, bracing themselves for the bloodshed that was soon to come.

The three students got back to their feet and picked up several objects from the ground, mainly pieces of wood with nails sticking through them, and a bent metal pipe. The black haired young man pointed the pipe at Packer threateningly.

"_**YOU READY TO DIE?!" **_he yelled. Packer focused his attention back on the psychotic students and quickly powered up an attack.

"**No I'm not, but thank you for asking. **_**THUNDERBOLT!"**_

He pointed a hand at the black haired boy and fired a bolt of lightning at the pipe he was holding. The pipe acted as a conduit, sending the deadly currents through the boy's body, literally frying him from the inside out. He fell to his knees and then face first onto the floor, dead, his body still smoking from the devastating charge.

The other students looked at Packer in shock, clearly not expecting such an attack. Taking advantage of this, Packer quickly moved to attack, sending a thrusting side kick toward the girl, breaking the piece of wood she held in half and knocking her to the ground. Not finished with his attack, Packer spun around and delivered a back elbow to the red headed boy's face, causing him to hold his nose in pain. With the opening he needed, Packer powered up another lightning-based attack.

"_**LIGHTNING KNEE!"**_

Packer supercharged his right knee with electricity and jumped toward the red haired boy, striking him underneath the chin with the point of his knee. The force of the powerful impact caused the boy's head to snap back, breaking his neck instantly. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he toppled over onto the floor, never to move again.

The girl watched as the green haired warrior put down her red haired companion, and she realized that she was no match for him. But then, she looked over at the two girls that were watching the battle, and realized that while she wasn't going to be able to kill Packer, she could at least get one of the girls. She reached over and grabbed one of the rusted knives and leaped to her feet, yelling as she charged at Naomi and Seiko, who screamed in surprise as the psychotic girl rushed at them.

Hearing the girls scream, Packer turned to see the last of the deranged students running at Naomi and Seiko, rusted blade raised in the air. Thinking fast, he tossed Shiden at the girl with all his might. The electrified blade whistled through the air, fast approaching its target. As the girl laughed maniacally, running at the girls, she suddenly stopped in her tracks as she felt a jolting pain run through her upper body. She looked down, and gasped as she saw a blade, pulsing with lightning, sticking through her chest. She gasped again, coughing up blood, before falling to her knees and then to her side, her eyes closing for the last time. Crimson liquid dripped from her open mouth.

Naomi and Seiko were shivering, still not believing what they had just witnessed as they watched the battle unfold in front of them, with the end result being their good-natured friend Packer standing amongst the bodies of three students, their blood now on his hands, even though it had been in self-defense. Packer sighed as he walked over and extracted Shiden from the girl's body, blood still dripping from the pulsing blade. He looked up, and noted the scared look in Naomi and Seiko's eyes. He couldn't imagine what they were thinking as they watched him kill other human beings right in front of them.

"**I'm sorry you girls had to watch that," **he began somberly. **"But I had no choice. They weren't gonna stop until we were dead, and you know that I can't let that happen, not with the fate of the galaxy at stake."**

"**We know, Packer, but wasn't there any way to reason with them?" **Naomi asked. Packer could only shake his head.

"**I guess being in here for so long had really taken its toll on their minds. Eventually, they just became insane, and there was really no reasoning with them," **Packer said. **"Is this what happens to the people who are brought to this place? Does everyone eventually succumb to madness and insanity?"**

"**Only some people."** Packer turned at the voice to see the little girl in red standing a few feet away. **"The **_**REALLY**_** unfortunate souls, however, are met with their end by a gigantic individual who loves to maim, kill, and torture innocent people with a sledgehammer. Speaking of which… we'll see how you fare against him when he arrives."**

Packer's eyes narrowed as the girl cackled once again.

"**Good luck, green haired wonder warrior. You'll need it," **the girl cackled as she disappeared once again. Seiko walked up to Packer, eyes bulging with fear.

"**Packer, do you know who this giant man with a sledgehammer is?" **Seiko asked, perturbed.

"**No. I've seen glimpses of him in my dreams, but I don't know who he is. One thing's for damn sure, though. He's got some kind of connection with our girl in the red dress," **Packer replied.

"**Wait a second. Do you guys hear that?" **Naomi suddenly spoke. Seiko and Packer stopped talking and listened. The sound of heavy footsteps echoed throughout the hall, and was getting louder and louder, almost as if they were heading in their direction. Packer's eyes widened.

"**Oh, hell basket. He's here, whoever he is," **Packer stammered out.

They heard a low moan come from down the hall. All three spun and looked in that direction. All three gasped. In the dim light, they could see the outline of a very tall and sizable silhouette, but it wasn't until he walked forward into the flickering light was when Packer truly saw what they were up against.

**(AN: Cue the Stardust Ring theme from Tortured Souls. :P )**

It was a very tall man, with grey hair, black pants, a grey t-shirt and jacket spattered with blood, and brown boots. His skin was pale white, but his most terrifying feature was his eyes, red as blood, with a black liquid streaming down his face. He gripped a large sledgehammer in his giant hands. His motions were almost zombie-like, and he had the look and sound of a zombie as well, but Packer had the feeling this was no ordinary ghoul. They had stumbled across several corpses around the school, some with their skulls completely caved in, so he had to assume that this undead entity was the culprit.

The giant man continued to walk slowly toward them, with a steady, shuffling walk. Flashes of lightning would occasionally light up his entire frame in the hallway. Naomi and Seiko took a step back out of fear, and Packer gripped the handle of his sword a little tighter than before, raising it in a defensive posture.

"**Be careful, Packer," **Seiko warned. Packer simply nodded, keeping his full attention on the monster in front of him. He grimaced as the giant man slowly looked up at him, and his red eyes narrowed. Without warning, he let out an inhuman howl and lifted his sledgehammer above his head. Sensing the incoming attack, Packer jumped back out of the way as the hammer came crashing down, smashing a hole in the floor where he had been standing. Reacting quickly, Packer responded with a roundhouse kick to the side of the giant man's head, but it only staggered the beast momentarily as he reared back and brought the sledgehammer down again.

Unable to dodge, Packer brought Shiden up and blocked the giant's hammer. It became a test of strength between them, but Packer was quickly being overpowered by the giant's sheer strength. Packer was physically strong himself, but he was no match for the giant's power. With ease, the creature pushed Packer backward, sending him off balance, allowing him to wind up and swing his sledgehammer like a baseball bat, catching Packer in the chest and sending him flying backward. He hit back first on the ground and slid to a stop at the girls' feet, gasping for air.

"**Packer, are you okay?!" **Seiko yelled as she knelt down beside Packer, trying to help him to his feet.

"**Yeah, I'm fine. Thank goodness my armor deflected the blow some, but that still hurt like hell," **Packer responded. He was holding his side where the hammer had struck him, but he quickly shook it off and powered up an attack. Electricity coursed through his arms.

"_**THUNDERBOLT!"**_

He fired a bolt of lightning at the creature. It struck him dead on in the chest, but it seemed to have no effect, as the giant man didn't even flinch. Thinking fast, Packer powered up a different elemental attack.

"_**ICE SPREADER!"**_

He fired a sphere of ice at the man, striking him and encasing him in an ice coffin, much like he did the spirit in the infirmary. But it didn't take long for the giant to break free of his icy prison.

"**Well, shit. This isn't working out very well," **Packer muttered.

"**What about using your fireball?" **Naomi suggested.

"**Well, it's worth a shot," **Packer agreed. He charged up his fire elemental attack, only this time, he crossed his arms, and when the attack reached full power, he flung them outward in a fiery haze.

"_**IMMOLATION!"**_

A fireball roared toward the giant, except that it was in the shape of a giant X. It struck the undead man, and it finally got a reaction: the man was swinging his arms around wildly, trying to put the fire out. Seizing the opportunity, Packer ran forward and thrust Shiden through the man's chest, eliciting a grunt from him. Packer looked up, and gasped as the giant was staring down at him, his red eyes narrowed in anger. The giant reared back and nailed Packer in the head with a backfist, sending Packer crashing to the floor. The giant then reached down, pulled Shiden from his stomach, and tossed the weapon aside like a toy.

He then reached down and grabbed Packer by the back of the neck and tossed him into one of the windows, shattering it on impact as Packer crumpled to the ground. The giant kicked Packer in his injured side, causing him to groan in pain. Not stopping his attack, the giant picked Packer back up and delivered a massive uppercut to Packer's jaw, knocking him unceremoniously back to the ground.

"_**PACKER!" **_Seiko screamed tearfully.

"_**Come on, Packer, get up!" **_Naomi yelled, tears streaming down her face as well.

Packer was lying on his back, a cut above his eye and on his mouth. Blood was dripping down his face from his open wounds. He was vaguely aware of where he was and was on the brink of unconsciousness. The giant stood over him, and with a growl, reached down and grabbed him by the neck, picking him up off the ground. Packer gurgled as he felt the oxygen being taken from him as the creature tightened his grip around his neck. Knowing he had one chance to save himself, Packer grabbed a glass dagger and somehow buried it into the creature's shoulder, which still didn't make it flinch. However, the spell contained within activated, illuminating the room in a sudden flash of light, causing the creature to howl and cover his eyes, dropping Packer in the process.

Packer coughed as the precious oxygen returned to his lungs, but he knew he had to act fast. This monster was stronger than anyone he had ever faced before, and he knew he was a serious threat to himself and the girls, a threat he had to eliminate. Thinking fast, he charged up his supernatural abilities to full power, preparing himself to use his maximum potential against this hell incarnate. His left fist suddenly became engulfed in flames as he began his attack once again.

"_**PYRO PUNCH!"**_

His fist slammed into the giant's head, causing him to stagger backwards from the force of the blow. Not stopping there, Packer's right hand crackled with electricity.

"_**THUNDERPUNCH!"**_

The lightning-charged hand rammed into the creature's stomach, causing a moan to erupt from its diaphragm. Packer now charged up his left fist with ice power.

"_**ZERO PUNCH!"**_

His third strike nailed the creature in the neck, causing him to grab his throat as choking sounds were heard from the giant. Packer ducked down, and powered up his right fist with one last attack. This time, it shone with a bright light, indicating an element he hadn't used yet.

"_**AURORA PUNCH!"**_

Putting everything he had into the punch, Packer hit the creature with a powerful light-charged uppercut, and finally succeeded in knocking the giant off his feet.

"**All right, Packer!" **Naomi yelled.

"_**KICK HIS ASS, PACKER-KUN! YOU CAN DO IT!" **_Seiko screamed in encouragement.

Packer was starting to breathe heavily. The battle had begun to take its toll on him, and the overusage of his supernatural powers wasn't helping matters. This undead being was forcing him to put everything he had into this fight, and it was something Packer was just not ready for. But he was determined to win this battle, no matter what the cost was.

The giant moaned as he began to get back to his feet, causing Packer to gasp in surprise. A normal human wouldn't even have a prayer of getting back up from an attack like that, yet this creature was shaking it off like it was nothing. Packer was starting to get worried, but he still had an ace in the hole.

As the giant rose to his feet, Packer began to power up two elements in each hand: lightning in his right hand and fire in his left. He brought them together and pointed his hands at the giant man, summoning a new combination attack.

"_**PYRO BOLT!"**_

The fire and lightning swirled around each other as it charged at the giant, combining right before striking the creature and setting off a fiery explosion, causing the girls to fall to their knees. But the force of the impact had only knocked the creature down to one knee, causing Packer to growl in frustration.

"**Damn, what's it gonna take to put this guy down for good?!" **Packer shouted. _'It looks like I have no other choice but to bust out my most powerful move.'_

The giant growled as he rose back to his feet, raising his sledgehammer as he walked toward Packer. Knowing he was going to have to buy some time, Packer charged up one of his weaker light-based attacks. A ball of light appeared in his hands.

"_**ANGEL SPARK!"**_

He tossed the light sphere at the giant with an underhanded pitch, nailing him right in the face. The giant dropped his hammer and covered his eyes, all the while howling in pain. Knowing that this was the one chance he had, Packer began to gather what power he had left to summon his ultimate attack.

"**Light of the heavens, lend me your power!" **Packer shouted. Two bright spheres of holy light began to gather in his hands, and once they reached their full potential, he pointed them at the still-reeling giant and let loose his most powerful supernatural ability.

"_**SHINING HELIX!"**_

A pair of light beams shot out from Packer's hands, swirling around each other like a double helix. The giant's vision had cleared just enough to see the super powerful attack slam into him with the force of a semi-truck. He howled in pain as the holy light blanketed him in its wake.

When the light finally faded, Packer was completely exhausted, as was his powers. Sweat ran down his forehead, and he was sore from head to toe. He had never used his powers to this extent before, and it had taken a massive toll on his body. But he looked forward and finally smiled. The giant was lying on his back, steam rising from his body. He was completely still.

Packer sighed in relief. He had done it. He had won this grueling battle.

He walked over and retrieved Shiden, slipping it back into its sheath before walking back over to the girls. Tears were streaming down both of their faces as they greeted him.

"**You did it, Packer! Unbelievable!" **Naomi exclaimed.

Seiko jumped into his arms. **"You're amazing, Packer!" **she yelled. Packer chuckled.

"**Well, I try to be…" **he began, but suddenly, he heard a low moan coming from down the hall. Packer turned at the sound and gasped in horror. Naomi's eyes went wide as saucers.

"_**YAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" **_Seiko screamed.

The giant man, who had been down and out just a minute before, was struggling to get back to its feet. Steam was still coming from its body from the powerful light attack. Packer's mouth promptly dropped open in amazement and horror.

'_But… it can't be! The Shining Helix is my strongest attack, and this dirt bag's __**still**__ getting back up?! It's just not possible!' _Packer thought fervently.

The monster stumbled back over to where his sledgehammer was and picked it up, setting his focus back on Packer and the girls. Sweat began pouring down Packer's face.

"**Packer, isn't there anything else you can do?" **Seiko asked.

"**I don't think there is," **Packer replied, fear evident in his voice. **"I threw everything I had at this guy, and he's still coming. Even my strongest attack, the Shining Helix, wasn't enough to put this guy down." **He still couldn't believe those words had come out of his mouth. For the first time in his life, doubt had been injected into him. Not even his most powerful attacks could stop this behemoth. Fear began to gather in his heart, a fear that even as strong and talented as he was, it might not be enough to survive the evil this school resonated with.

Seiko looked at Packer with wide eyes, fear creeping into her own voice. **"Wait, you used your best move against it and it didn't work?!" **she exclaimed. Packer could only nod.

"**Then, what do we do?" **Naomi asked nervously.

"**I hate to say it, but I think it's time for us to beat a hasty retreat," **Packer replied. The giant man let out a loud moan and started a lumbering jog towards them. **"**_**MOVE!" **_Packer yelled.

All three turned and ran down the hall, past the pulverized corpse and back down where they had come from, loud footsteps echoing in their ears. In a panic, Packer looked around for any open door or hallway they could duck into.

"**Damn, all of these hallways look the same. Where the hell are we supposed to hide?!" **Packer blurted out.

"**Hey, over here," **a voice called out.

"**Huh?" **Packer muttered. The trio stopped and looked back down the hall where the voice had come from. Standing there was a teenage girl of somewhat above average height and below average weight. She had indigo eyes and black medium short hair, with two red hair rings and a red pentagram-shaped hair ornament on the top left part of her head. She wore a maroon blazer, with a plain white shirt underneath and a plain red necktie, a dark blue skirt, and has a blue shirt tied around her waist. She also wore crew length black socks and brown shoes.

"**Who are you?" **Packer asked.

"**No time. Get in here, quickly," **the girl responded, opening a secret door in the hallway. The doorway seemed to lead into what appeared to be a living space inside what looked to be a custodian's closet. Not wasting time quibbling over details, Packer, Naomi and Seiko quickly rushed inside, while the mysterious girl closed the door behind them.

The girl put a finger up to her lips, signaling for them to remain silent. They held their breath as they heard heavy footsteps out in the hallway, along with the familiar groan. The footsteps slowly walked past the hidden door and down the hallway. Eventually, the sound faded away, leaving the hallways eerily silent once more.

The trio sighed in relief, and the girl walked over to them, her arms crossed in front of her.

"**I have to say, young man, that was quite an impressive display you put on out there. You've got tremendous skills, but sadly, not even that is enough to stop the overwhelming power of this place," **the girl said. Packer arched an eyebrow.

"**So it was you I sensed out in the hallway. Who exactly are you?" **Packer inquired.

"**Naho Saenoki, of Paulownia Academy, Class 2-1. And you are?"** Naho asked.

"**We're from Kisaragi Academy, Class 2-9. My name is Naomi Nakashima," **Naomi replied.

"**I'm Seiko Shinohara. Pleased to meet you," **Seiko said.

"**The name is Packer. Nice to meet you," **Packer said. Naho arched an eyebrow at Packer.

"**I get the feeling you're not from around here, are you?" **she inquired.

"**No. I work for an organization in San Francisco known as the Covenant. I am a high ranking knight of that organization, and I've been sent here on a very important mission," **Packer responded. He spent the next several minutes giving Naho the details about his mission to rescue "the Nine", and the effect it could have on the galaxy if he failed.

"**Interesting. So if you don't get the other members of your class out of this place alive, then the galaxy pretty much ends, correct?" **Naho asked.

"**Pretty much. I don't know why their lives are tied to the fate of the galaxy, but fate works in mysterious ways," **Packer said.

"**Indeed. Well, you are all more than welcome to use this space to rest. I will return shortly, as I still have to find someone important to me. Once I return, I might be able to help you find your friends," **Naho said.

"**That would be greatly appreciated," **Packer responded.

Naho smiled at him, and then walked over to the door and slid it open. She walked out and closed it behind her, walking down the hallway with intent. Her footsteps were soon replaced by silence once more.

Packer sighed as he walked over to where there were some futons set up and sat down, taking out a glass dagger and sticking it to the wall. The dagger started to glow, illuminating the room a little bit.

"**There. At least now, we have some light in here," **Packer said.

Seiko looked at Packer and let out a small gasp. It was the first time she had gotten a good look at him since the battle against the giant man, and she noticed the cuts that were above his eye and on his lip.

"**Packer, you're injured!" **Seiko exclaimed.

"**Yeah, that bastard got a couple of good shots in. My ribs are hurting a bit as well," **Packer admitted.

Seiko looked around and noticed a small first aid kit sitting on a small coffee table in front of what appeared to be a small, broken television sitting on a stand. She walked over, grabbed the first aid kit, and took it back over to where Packer was sitting.

Seiko opened the kit and found a few things inside, such as bandages, cotton bud, and antiseptic cream. She took out the cotton and cream, and set the kit down on the floor beside them. She put some cream on a cotton bud, and began to dab it over Packer's cuts. When she was done, she placed a bandage on the cut over Packer's eye.

"**There we go, good as new! Sort of," **Seiko giggled.

"**Thanks, Seiko," **Packer said with a smile.

* * *

Once everything had calmed down, it reached a point where they didn't have much desire to go back out into the halls of the school, at least for the time being. They knew they were eventually going to have to continue the search for their friends, but they also needed to rest before resuming the search.

Naomi's ankle had begun to bother her again, so Packer was sitting with her foot resting on his lap, his right hand lightly gripping her injured ankle. His hand pulsated with ice power, just enough to soothe the pain in Naomi's injured ankle.

In the meantime, Naomi and Seiko were engaged in a lively conversation, as they talked about various things like school and the culture festival. Packer had been feeling himself nod off, until he picked up an interesting part of their conversation. He kept his eyes closed, but his ears were completely open to what they were talking about.

Naomi had been discussing something with Seiko, when she looked up and noticed that Seiko was staring at her for some reason.

"**Hmm? Seiko, is something wrong?" **Naomi asked. At her inquiry, Seiko blushed and looked away.

"**Ah, no, nothing's wrong, Naomi! What makes you say that?" **Seiko responded. Naomi arched an eyebrow. It was still difficult to see anything in the dim light, but she could barely make out the blush that was forming on Seiko's face. Seiko shyly looked up into Naomi's eyes.

"**Naomi?" **Seiko asked.

"**Yeah?" **Naomi replied.

"**T-This is kind of hard for me to say, but… well, um…" **Seiko stammered. Naomi blinked her eyes a little bit, and Packer arched an eyebrow himself.

'_Hmm? Is Seiko actually stammering? I've never heard her do that before…' _Packer thought.

"**What is it, Seiko?" **Naomi asked curiously.

"**Um… I, uh…" **Seiko struggled to get the words out. She seemed so unusually shy and nervous. Naomi was confused. What was she trying to say? After a moment, Seiko placed her hands on her hips and laughed.

"**Ah, never mind! Heh heh heh…" **she laughed. At that, Naomi groaned.

"**Oh, come on, Seiko! My curiosity is killing me! What do you want to say to me?" **Naomi exclaimed. Seiko's nervous expression returned, and her hands dropped to her sides.

"**Promise you won't laugh?" **Seiko whispered. Naomi gave her a lopsided smile.

"**I promise, Seiko. Just tell me what you want to say," **Naomi replied.

"**Okay, because I'm totally serious," **Seiko said, her expression serious and sincere. Naomi's heart skipped a beat. The way that Seiko was looking at her, it was a look she had never seen anyone give her before. She felt her breathing become heavy for some reason, and she suddenly felt extremely nervous.

"**S-Since we don't have any idea what's going to happen to us in here, there's something I really need to tell you," **Seiko said.

"**Okay, what is it?" **Naomi asked. She gasped lightly when she noticed that Seiko's gaze was now directed at her lips for a moment, and then Seiko looked up into her eyes.

"**Naomi… w-will you… umm… k-k-kiss me?" **Seiko asked nervously, her face a deep, dark crimson.

Packer's eyes almost shot open, shocked at what he had just heard. Naomi gasped at Seiko's sudden request.

"**Wait, what?!" **Naomi exclaimed, not believing what she heard.

"**I want to kiss you, Naomi," **Seiko said sincerely. Naomi was stunned. She knew that Seiko had a fondness for her and their friendship, but she never knew that Seiko's affections for her were that deep. She really didn't know what to say.

Packer's mind was racing with panic. Why was she asking for Naomi to kiss her? Was she really that scared, or was there something else that Seiko had been hiding this entire time? Packer kept his eyes closed, trying to appear asleep as he listened in.

"**But why, Seiko? Why do you want to kiss me?" **Naomi asked curiously.

The next four words out of Seiko's mouth would tear Packer's heart in half.

"**Because I love you."**


	9. Chapter 9: Inescapable Fate

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note: **I wanna thank you guys for the reviews you've been giving to my story. It's nice to know that there are some people who are really getting into this story, and the past few reviews have given me a lot of motivation to continue writing this story in spite of my busy work schedule. :)

**As with the previous chapter, there will be character deaths in this one. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.**

Y'all better have your feels ready for this one…

* * *

_**CHAPTER 9: INESCAPABLE FATE**_

It was like someone had reached into Packer's chest and tore his heart out. The stinging pain and jealousy he felt was cutting through him like a hot knife through butter. Ironically, they were the words he had been hoping to hear, but they weren't directed at him. Instead, Seiko had directed them at her best friend Naomi.

Naomi sat there in shock, still not quite believing her ears. Her best friend in the whole world, a friend she has known for years, had confessed to her. Her mind was racing as she tried to absorb what she had heard.

"**Y-You love me… as a friend, right?" **Naomi asked, trying to clarify Seiko's feelings. Seiko shook her head fervently, indicating that it was more than just friendship she was seeking from Naomi. _'Seiko… actually confessed to me? But... I haven't even had a boy confess to me yet!' _Naomi thought.

Seiko hung her head, staring down at her feet. The silence was overwhelming her, almost as if it was causing her physical pain. Even in the dim light, it was hard for Naomi to make out Seiko's features clearly, but she was certain that Seiko was quivering, and blushing from ear to ear. It was a side of Seiko she had never seen before.

"**You're serious, Seiko?" **Naomi asked, wanting Seiko to confirm her feelings. Seiko looked back up into Naomi's brown eyes, her look sincere and her face as red as a tomato.

"**Serious as a heart attack, Naomi. I'd marry you if I could. I want to kiss you, and hug you, too. I-I… I've felt this way for a long time, Naomi. You mean the world to me, and I want us to be together… forever," **Seiko admitted.

It was the first time Naomi had ever heard Seiko speak so softly, or with such a stammer in her voice. Before she knew it, she was crying. Her soft sobs tore through Seiko's heart, thinking that she was causing her to cry like this.

"**Naomi… I…" **she stammered.

"**Seiko… I'm sorry, I… I just never expected you to feel that way, that's all," **Naomi tried to explain as she wiped the tears from her eyes. **"I don't know if I truly feel the same way, or if I'm able to return your feelings, but… thank you, Seiko. At least now, I know that you truly value what we have."**

Seiko finally gave her a lopsided smile. Sure, it wasn't the reaction she was hoping for, but at least she wasn't shooting her down. She felt her body warm up as she saw Naomi give her a slight giggle and a smile.

Packer let out a small sigh. So, it was true after all. Seiko was in love with Naomi. He had a hunch that that was the case, but he didn't listen to his instincts. He decided to pursue the feelings he had for Seiko, and now, it was coming back to bite him. The pain he felt in his heart was overwhelming, but he couldn't blame Seiko, nor could he blame Naomi. He decided to dive in head first, and he was now paying the price for it.

Naomi and Seiko looked over at Packer when they heard him sigh. Both were surprised when they saw the depressed looked on his face and the pain that shone in his eyes.

"**Packer? Have you been awake this entire time?" **Naomi asked. She got a slow nod from him.

"**Yeah, pretty much," **Packer responded softly.

"**Packer, I'm so sorry. I should've told you sooner, but I…" **Seiko began worriedly.

"**I know, Seiko. You don't have to apologize to me," **Packer responded, looking up in Seiko's eyes. She gasped, taken aback by the pain she saw in his green eyes.

"**But why?" **Seiko asked. Packer sighed in resignation.

"**Because I had a feeling that this was gonna happen," **Packer began. **"I had a hunch that you were in love with Naomi, but… I didn't listen to my instincts. I chose to listen to my heart instead, thinking that maybe I was overreacting." **He exhaled sadly. **"Guess I was wrong."**

Naomi and Seiko fell silent. Packer's explanation was starting to make Seiko feel torn about her own feelings. On the one hand, she had just confessed her feelings for Naomi, whom she had harbored strong feelings about for years, but on the other, Packer had found his way into her life, and was starting to give her a new reason to feel happiness. She was totally conflicted, her feelings now split in two different directions.

Packer could read the conflicting emotions on Seiko's face, and he knew he was the source of those emotions.

"**I'm sorry, Seiko. It's my fault you're feeling this way," **Packer apologized. **"All this was supposed to be was a simple mission of get in, get on with it, get it over with, and get out. Simple and to the point, no emotional attachments. But… I chose instead to let my feelings get in the way, and now we're at a crossroads. I don't want to just forget the feelings I have for you, Seiko… but I also don't want to stand in the way of your own happiness… even if it's not with me."**

The words felt like they were stinging the back of his throat as he spoke them, but they were all sincere. He was truly concerned for Seiko's interests, and if it meant stepping aside to see them fulfilled, he would do so, even if it meant sacrificing his own happiness.

Seiko looked up at him, shock registering on her face. She truly couldn't believe what a great person Packer was. He was willing to forsake his own happiness for hers. He truly had her best interests at heart, and it was causing her to suddenly regret her confession to Naomi. She had always had a crush on Naomi since they first met, but now, Packer was knocking her breathless with his selfless actions. He would really give up everything he held dear, just for her? The very thought was causing her heart to melt.

They heard the door open, and they looked up to see Naho entering the room. She walked over to where they were sitting.

"**Were you able to find who you were looking for?" **Packer asked.

"**No, not yet. But the coast is now clear if you want to continue your search," **Naho responded.

Packer nodded as he gently moved Naomi's foot to stand up, stretching to get the kinks out. His body wasn't as sore as it was before, and he felt his powers slowly return to him as his mana pool began to regenerate. **"Then let's get moving," **he said as he began walking toward the door.

As Naomi began to stand up, she noticed that Seiko was still sitting on her knees, still deep in thought. She looked up as Naomi placed a hand on her shoulder.

"**Seiko, what's wrong?" **Naomi asked.

"**I'm so confused, Naomi. I just admitted my love to you, but I've just realized that Packer is such a wonderful guy. And I know how much you like Mochida-kun, and I really don't want to take you from him. Ohhh, what should I do?" **Seiko asked, completely confused.

"**Take your time and sort out your feelings. I'm sure you will figure out who you truly want to spend the rest of your life with," **Naomi responded with a smile. Seiko looked at Naomi as she reflected on what she said, her thoughts racing.

"**You girls coming?" **Packer yelled back.

"**Yeah, just give us a second!" **Naomi responded. She looked back to Seiko once more and then began walking toward the door.

"**Naomi…"**

Naomi looked back at Seiko as she smiled at her.

"**Thank you… for understanding."**

Naomi giggled.

"**It's what friends are for, Seiko. And you're welcome."**

* * *

As they continued to walk the halls of the school in search of their friends, Packer had noticed something odd about Naho. Her eyes in particular, looked almost dull, like a dead fish.

"**Naho, you're not alive anymore, are you?" **Packer asked. Naho glanced over at him.

"**What makes you say that?" **she asked curiously.

"**Your eyes kind of gave you away," **Packer responded.

"**Well, you'd be correct. I died some time ago, but that doesn't concern me. I'm only interested in finding who I'm looking for," **Naho retorted.

"**Who exactly are you looking for?" **Packer asked.

"**My Sensei. He came to this place with his assistant, and I don't know where they could be. I need to find them before they succumb to the power of this place," **Naho responded.

"**I see. So, do you know who the man with the hammer was?" **Packer asked.

"**His name is Yoshikazu Yanagihori. He was initially a kind-hearted gentleman who worked at Heavenly Host Elementary School and generally got on well with the students. Then Yoshikazu's mentality and will began to deteriorate and eventually reduced his ability to speak coherently to just grunts and moans," **Naho explained**. "Eventually, he lost his humanity altogether. He is the man responsible for the murder of three young children here at Heavenly Host, which was one of the many events that led to the demolition of the school in the normal realm. But the school lives on in an alternate dimension, and anyone who is sent here can never escape again."**

"**Yoshikazu, huh?" **Packer muttered to himself. At least now, he knew the giant's name, one that was going to stick with him for as long as they were stuck here.

After walking around the school, they found themselves back at the infirmary.

"**Well, looks like we walked in one massive circle around this school," **Packer said. He looked down and sighed, when his eyes caught something lying over near the wall. **"Hello, what do we have here?" **He bent down to pick it up, bringing close to his face so he could see it. It was a small scrap of paper. **"It's a charm scrap."**

"**Hmm, I wonder who it belongs to," **Naomi said.

Packer stared at it for a minute, when suddenly, an image of one of their friends flashed in front of him. He gasped in surprise.

"**Packer, what's wrong?" **Seiko asked worriedly.

"**I think this is Mayu's charm scrap," **Packer responded.

"**One of your friends?" **Naho asked.

"**Yeah. The question is, where could she be?" **Packer wondered, slipping the scrap into his uniform. There was a shine that suddenly caught his eye further down the hall. **"Huh? What the hell was that?" **He walked down the hall, but stopped when he realized that he was walking toward the pulverized corpse they had seen earlier.

"**I don't know who this person was, but this is a pretty gruesome way to die. It's sad, really," **Naho said, walking up to him.

Packer looked down at the floor. He noticed what appeared to be the source of the shine; a sphere about the size of a nickel was sitting in the pool of blood. Packer gingerly reached down and picked it, studying it in his hand.

"**What did you find?" **Naomi asked.

"**I'm not sure. It almost looks like a marble, but… I don't really know," **Packer replied. He closed his fist around it, and his eyes suddenly widened as an image filled his consciousness. Naho arched an eyebrow at Packer's sudden weird movement.

"**What's going on?" **she asked.

"**We've seen this happen before. What was it called, Naomi?" **Seiko asked.

"**I think he called it Future Sight," **Naomi responded.

"**So he can see glimpses of the future and whatnot. Impressive," **Naho remarked.

Packer gasped as the image filled his eyes…

* * *

_He was standing here, outside the infirmary, when he heard voices coming from inside the room._

"…_**?! No, stop!"**_

_He recognized the voice instantly. It was Ayumi._

_Suddenly, the door smashed open, revealing that Ayumi and Yoshiki were inside the infirmary. Suddenly, two female child spirits rushed from the room: One was missing an eye; the other was missing the top half of her head. And in their grasp was…_

'_No… it's Mayu! What are they doing to her?!' Packer thought._

"_**Suzumoto!" **__Yoshiki yelled._

_The two child spirits suddenly grabbed one of Mayu's legs and, with superhuman strength, threw her down the hall as hard as they could._

"_**No… NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" **__Mayu screamed._

_The next sound he heard was a sickening thud against the concrete wall at the end of the hallway, followed by the sound of what seemed to be running water._

'_No… it can't be…!' Packer thought fervently._

"_**MAYUUUUU!" **__Ayumi screamed, running from the room. Yoshiki was right behind her._

"_**Is she… no…" **__Yoshiki muttered. He followed Ayumi down the hall._

_Packer's eyes were wide as saucers. He walked down the hall slowly, until suddenly…_

"_**YAAAAAAAAAARGH!"**_

…_Ayumi's scream echoed in his ears. He ran down the hall, stopping when he saw the horrific sight, causing him to gasp._

_Ayumi was on her knees sobbing, while Yoshiki had his hands on his head, looking close to tears himself. They were staring… at what used to be their best friend, now pulverized against the wall. To add icing on the cake, Packer gasped again when he noticed something amidst the mangled flesh on the wall…_

_What remained of Mayu's hair… with the familiar pink hair ties._

"_**No… this can't be happening!" **__Yoshiki yelled in frustration._

"_**Suzumoto-san… we weren't able to save her… NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" **__Ayumi screamed, unable to contain her anguish any longer._

_Then, everything went white…_

* * *

Packer gasped as he came out of Future Sight, his vision becoming blurry for a few seconds.

"**You okay, Packer?" **Naho asked. Packer blinked a couple of times, trying to clear his vision.

"**Yeah, I think so…" **he began, but he trailed off as he recalled the visions he had just seen. His eyes widened in horror, as he now realized what he was holding in his hand… and who it was that died against this concrete wall. His body began to shake uncontrollably, as anger began to cloud his mind.

Seiko and Naomi were glad that he was okay after his Future Sight ended, but they became concerned once again as his eyes became as wide as baseballs, and he began to quiver violently. Seiko gasped as tears began streaming down Packer's face, as he turned and stared at what was left of a human being on the wall. His fist tightened around the little marble he held in his hand.

"**No… **_**GODDAMNIT NO!" **_he shouted vehemently, his fist catching fire as he slammed it into the wall next to him, causing a sizable hole to form. Sobs began to rack his body. **"Please, God, no…"**

"**Packer, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" **Seiko asked, fear beginning to creep in. Packer looked up at her, tears still fresh in his eyes.

"**I now know what this is," **he said, opening his fist, showing the marble to them once more. Some of the blood that was on the marble had rubbed off onto Packer's glove. **"It's… It's… It's part of a h-h-hair tie…"**

Naomi and Seiko gasped when they heard that, but they were unprepared for the words that escaped Packer's mouth next as he looked up at them, tears streaming down his face.

"…**Mayu's hair tie."**

Naomi's hands shot to her mouth to prevent a sob from escaping it as tears formed in her own eyes. Seiko had a look of pure terror on her face as she shook head vehemently, not believing anything that Packer was saying.

"**No… **_**It's a lie! A lie, goddamnit! Don't lie to me, Packer! Don't you fucking lie to me!" **_Seiko screamed, grabbing Packer's jacket by the collar as she screamed at him. Packer closed his eyes and lowered his head as tears continued to stream down his face.

"**I wish it was a lie, Seiko… but it's true. If you don't believe me, see for yourself…" **Packer said sadly. He took out his flashlight and shined it up at the wall. Sobs racked Naomi and Seiko's bodies as they saw what Packer had seen in his vision: A clump of Mayu's hair, with her hair ties still attached, resting among the red viscera on the wall.

Seiko dropped to her knees and buried her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably.

"_**NOOOO! SUZUME! WHY DID SHE HAVE TO DIE?!" **_she sobbed.

Naomi fell to her knees beside her, and Seiko instantly brought her into a hug. Both girls continued to sob uncontrollably. Naho stood there, a look of pity on her face.

Packer couldn't believe it. It was his mission to bring the Nine back alive, but now, it was no longer possible. The earth-shattering realization suddenly dawned on him.

"**I've failed. I've failed my mission," **Packer choke out. He dropped to his knees, his face completely blank. **"The galaxy is doomed… and it's all on me. Because I failed to protect everyone, the whole galaxy is gonna pay for my failure…" **He looked back at the mangled corpse that was once Mayu Suzumoto. **"Mayu… Suzume… please forgive me…"**

Naho remained silent through all of this, watching the drama play out in front of her. _'He really cares about the well-being of his friends, as well as the world and the galaxy. Maybe he is more than capable of taking on the evil of this school.'_

"**There might still be a way to save her," **Naho announced.

All eyes shot up toward her in shock. Packer looked up at her, not believing what she was saying.

"**There's a way to save Mayu? How?" **Packer asked. Naho turned away from him.

"**There's a way, but I have a feeling you're not gonna like it…"**

* * *

Satoshi looked down at his sister Yuka, a small smile on his face. They had woken up in the same classroom that Packer, Seiko, and Naomi had been in, only they were in a different closed space than the others. They had been greeted by a friendly spirit, who had explained the situation to them.

"**You're doing great, Yuka," **Satoshi said. **"I'm really impressed how long you've gone without crying."**

Yuka hiccupped a couple of times, trying to fight back the tears that were trying to form in her eyes.

"**I'm not crying, Onii-chan. I'm not…" **Yuka replied.

"_**I sense that other corporeal beings such as yourselves were brought here as well," **_the spirit said. _**"Ten in total. Ten poor souls pulled in at once."**_

Satoshi's eyes widened.

"**That would be me and Yuka, Naomi, Yoshiki, Shinozaki, Yui-sensei, Shinohara, Suzumoto, Morishige, and Packer. In other words, everybody who was in the room at the time," **Satoshi muttered. **"Damn it!"**

"**So everyone else is in this school, too?" **Yuka asked.

"_**Not exactly. As I mentioned, this is a nexus of closed spaces, different dimensions. Your friends are scattered among them," **_the spirit explained. _**"So in essence, they are indeed all in this school, but it's not quite the same place for everyone. Meeting anyone else here may prove… difficult."**_

"**Difficult, huh? Well, that's just freaking great!" **Satoshi steamed.

"_**If you should attempt to defy the will of this school to find them, you may ultimately invoke its wrath, and that's a fate… best avoided."**_

Satoshi's eyes narrowed at that, and he clinched his fist in determination.

"**We appreciate the warning, but we have to try," **Satoshi said. **"We'll do whatever it takes to find everyone and get out of here."**

"**Onii-chan…" **Yuka said in admiration.

"**They're all such good people. They've done nothing to deserve this! And I absolutely will not give up on them just because there's some Godforsaken curse that might strike back at me!" **Satoshi exclaimed.

"_**It's a rarity to find such righteous determination these days. Be sure you don't lose it along the way. You're desire not to let a single person die is… admirable. Try to retain that noble spirit, no matter what horrors may await. And even if you can't save everyone, you may still be able to alter your fate for the better, even if only by the tiniest of margins. Just don't end up… like us."**_

Satoshi nodded. **"We don't plan to," **he replied.

"_**I sense that one of your friends seems to possess supernatural abilities. I can't tell which one it is, but you must find that person if you can. They may have the power needed to finally break the curse of this retched place…"**_

With that, the spirit vanished. Satoshi arched an eyebrow at the spirit's words.

"**What did he mean by 'supernatural abilities'? That doesn't make any sense," **Satoshi muttered.

"**Onii-chan, what did he mean by 'the school's wrath'?" **Yuka asked.

"**Hmm, I'm not sure, to be honest. Is he saying the school has a mind of its own or something?" **Satoshi shook his head. **"Well, at any rate, we should try to find Yui-sensei and the others as soon as possible. And we need to get you home, too. If we come across a way out of here, I want you to take it."**

"**But…" **Yuka began.

"**There must be an entranceway, or an emergency exit, or roof access, or something that leads outside. And if so, you're to go straight home, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Capiche?" **Satoshi said.

"…**Okay," **Yuka reluctantly agreed.

With that, Satoshi took hold of Yuka's hand and led her out of the classroom.

* * *

Mayu groaned as she awoke from her slumber. She slowly sat up to her knees, as the cobwebs slowly cleared from her head. As she looked around, she realized she wasn't in her old classroom anymore.

"**Huh? Where am I?" **she wondered out loud. **"Why… am I by myself?"**

She rose to her feet and brushed the dust off her uniform. She glanced both ways down the darkened hallway. Fear began to rise in her throat.

"**Shige-nii? Yui-sensei? Shinozaki-san? Packer-kun?" **she called out, but there was no answer, except the eerie silence of the hallway.

"**Hmm, the last thing I remember was I was in the classroom with everybody, taking down the festival decorations. But now…"** She clutched her head in her hands. **"God, where is this place?!" **she exclaimed. She started to hyperventilate as the fear began to overwhelm her.

'_Breathe, Mayu, breathe. Don't succumb to panic! Take a deep breathe, and try to think of a charm or something to get you through this!' _she thought. She gasped as she realized she did have a charm.

"**That's it! Shinozaki's charm! The one we all did, so we'd be friends forever!"**

Mayu dug into her skirt pockets, only to realize that the charm was missing.

"**Wait… it's gone? Oh, no! It's gone! I can't find it anywhere! My Sachiko Ever After paper scrap… gone! But… I had it in my hand. I know I did! Ooohhh, man! This sucks!"**

Her stomach growled, causing her to moan.

"**Man, why does stress always give me indigestion?"**

Suddenly, she heard a whisper of sound behind her. She turned and gasped.

"**What the hell…?!"**

She quickly ran toward the corner and hid. Coming down the hall were two ghost children. Both appeared to be female, although one was missing her left eye, and the other was missing the upper portion of her head. Both spirits giggled before entering the room marked "Infirmary". Their giggles echoed from inside the room.

Mayu stepped out from her hiding place and walked toward the entrance to the infirmary.

"**What… were they?" **she wondered out loud. **"They went in that room. Maybe… I should have a look…"**

Mayu took a deep breath and gingerly stepped into the infirmary.

* * *

Packer stared at Naho, an incredulous look on his face.

"**You've seriously gotta be shitting me, Saenoki," **Packer said.

"**I'm serious as a heart attack, Packer," **Naho replied. **"I have the power to send people to other closed spaces… but I only have enough power to send one of you, and I think you know who that has to be."**

Packer sighed in frustration. On the one hand, he was going to be able to save Mayu thanks to Naho being able to transport him to the closed space she was in, but on the other hand, it would mean leaving Naomi and Seiko behind, and he didn't like that prospect one bit.

Seiko noticed the conflicted look on Packer's face. She knew he didn't want to leave them behind, but if he was going to save Mayu, he had no choice, and Seiko knew it.

"**I know you don't want to do this, Packer, but we don't want to lose Suzume… and you also know what happens if we do lose her," **Seiko said.

Packer looked up at her. She seemed to have an understanding of what the situation was, and even though he could sense that she was scared, she also knew that this was for the greater good, and he knew he had to bring back everyone alive, no matter what. Realizing that there was no alternative, he sighed in resignation.

"**Alright. Just promise me you'll both be careful," **Packer said.

"**We will," **Naomi said.

"**Are you ready, Packer?" **Naho asked.

Packer looked at Naho and nodded. She motioned him over to where she was standing.

"**Be careful, Packer," **Seiko called out.

Packer stopped and turned around. He realized that there was a chance he might not see Seiko ever again, so he walked back over to Seiko, taking her hand in his.

"**I will, Seiko. I promise," **he replied, his face turning red. **"Umm… I know you have feelings for Naomi, but just in case something happens and I never get another chance to do this, well…"**

Packer took a deep breath, and leaned down and pressed his lips against Seiko's in a warm, tender kiss.

Seiko's eyes widened at the unexpected kiss, but she closed her eyes and melted into the feeling of his lips against hers, her arms coiling around his neck and tangling her fingers in his green hair. She had always thought her first kiss would be with Naomi, but now, she couldn't be more glad that Packer was the one to do so. The feeling was unlike anything she had ever felt before.

Naomi giggled as she watched Seiko and Packer. She couldn't help but blush, thinking that one day, that might be her and Satoshi doing the same thing. The very thought sent chills down her spine, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

Packer pulled away after a minute, his face red and his breathing heavy. Seiko looked at him, a blush on her face as well. She giggled as she brought a hand up to her mouth. Packer smiled back at her.

"**Um… just so you know… that was… uhh… my first kiss," **Packer admitted shyly. Seiko giggled at him again as she stared lovingly into his eyes.

"**Don't worry. It was my first, too," **she replied with a blush.

"**Are you ready now, Packer? We don't have much time if you're going to rescue your friend," **Naho interrupted. Packer looked back and nodded.

"**Right. Let's do this," **he replied.

He walked back over to where Naho was standing. Naho put her hands together, as if in prayer. After a moment, she began to chant an ancient spell.

"_**Splend… mans… hook…"**_

Packer began to feel a burning sensation in his body, but tried his best to ignore it as Naho continued the spell.

"_**Frigide… tsui… ball…"**_

Packer groaned as the burning sensation grew ever stronger.

"_**Ball… tsui… frigide… hook… mans… splend…"**_

Suddenly, Packer was lifted into the air, and his body began to glow in a bright white light.

"**Packer!" **Seiko shouted worriedly. Packer looked down at her, giving her a reassuring smile.

"**Don't worry! I'll be back for the both of you. Stay safe, girls," **he replied. With that, the light disappeared, taking Packer with it.

Naho grunted as she completed the spell.

"**It is done. The rest is up to him now," **she muttered. **"I must take my leave of you… for now. I still have to find the person I'm looking for. Good luck…"**

With that, she dissipated into the air, leaving Naomi and Seiko all alone.

"**So, what do we do now, Naomi?" **Seiko asked.

"**Well, we could go back to the custodian's closet and rest for a bit. There's nothing more we can do right now," **Naomi replied.

"**Sounds good to me," **Seiko replied.

The two of them held each other's hand as they walked back down the hall toward the custodian's closet.

* * *

Naomi and Seiko didn't know how long they sat in the custodian's closet. It felt like hours, but time had no meaning here. But they didn't seem to mind, since they had been talking almost nonstop since Packer was transported to the closed space Mayu was in.

Finally, Naomi couldn't hold it in any longer, and she turned to Seiko, full of questions.

"**So, Seiko, what was it like when Packer kissed you?" **she asked with a smile. Seiko blushed and brought a hand up to her lips, vividly remembering the kiss she shared with her green-haired boyfriend.

"**It was amazing. It felt like electricity was flowing through our lips into our bodies. I felt so lightheaded from it, and I imagine he felt the same way," **she replied, giggling.

"**I'm kind of surprised you didn't go deeper than that," **Naomi grinned.

"**I wanted to, but there wasn't really any time for that. Heh, maybe, once this whole thing is over with, we'll get to do it on a regular basis," **Seiko beamed.

"**So, does that mean you've finally figured things out, Seiko?" **Naomi asked.

"**Yeah, I think I have, Naomi," **Seiko replied. **"I'll still love you and cherish our friendship, but I know you like Mochida-kun, so I'm willing to step aside, much like Packer was willing to do for me. It would still bring me joy just to see you happy, Naomi." **Naomi sighed, her heart fluttering at Seiko's words. **"Besides, I've now realized just how much I like Packer… and he's a good kisser," **Seiko added with a giggle. Naomi laughed.

"**Wow. Sounds exciting," **Naomi said.

"**Heh heh heh, just wait until Mochida-kun confesses to you, and then you'll know what I'm feeling, Naomi-san," **Seiko grinned, causing Naomi to blush.

Suddenly, without warning, the building began to shake violently.

"**Oh, crap! It's another earthquake!" **Naomi shouted.

The girls huddled together as the building shook. After a minute or two, the shaking subsided.

"**Whew, I think it stopped," **Seiko muttered.

Just then, they heard an ear-piercing scream coming from outside the room. Both girls gasped as they recognized the voice.

"**That sounded like Suzume! Come on, Naomi!" **Seiko exclaimed, helping Naomi to her feet. They rushed out of the custodian's closet and ran down the hall in the direction of the scream.

"**Suzumoto! Where are you? Please, answer us, Suzu…" **Naomi began, but was suddenly stopped cold when they rounded the corner where the pulverized corpse of Mayu once was. It was no longer there. Instead, it had been replaced by two fresh bodies. One was laying face down, split in half at the torso. The other was lying on its side, the skull caved in.

"**Huh? It changed…" **Naomi began, but was interrupted by Seiko's low, painful moan that grew louder with each passing moment. Naomi glanced over at her friend, whose face had been drained of all color.

"**No… **_**nononononononoNONONONONO NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" **_Seiko screamed, dropping to her knees and burying her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably. Naomi glanced back over at the two bodies and gasped. The one lying on its side had remnants of a pink hair tie in her hair, indicating that it was Mayu, only now she had died from what looked to be blunt force trauma to her head. And the other body was…

"**Oh God, no… please no…" **Naomi sobbed.

"_**PACKER!" **_Seiko screamed into the thick air of the school, completely losing control of her emotions. **"**_**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

Without thinking, she stood up and ran down the hallway, leaving Naomi behind. Naomi was surprised by her sudden reaction and quickly tried to run after her.

"**Seiko, wait!" **she shouted, but her injured ankle buckled again, causing her to lose her balance and smack her head on the ground. She quickly began to lose consciousness.

"**N-N-No… Seiko…" **Naomi muttered as her eyesight faded to black.

* * *

Seiko wasn't sure how long she had been running, but she eventually came to a stop after her emotions began to calm down a little, though the pain in her heart was still as strong as ever.

"**Packer… Suzume… I can't believe I've lost them both now," **Seiko sobbed. **"I never even got to tell Packer how I truly feel about him…"**

After trying in vain to wipe the tears from her eyes, she realized with a start that she was all alone.

"**Naomi?" **Seiko stuttered. _'Oh, no! I left Naomi behind when I lost control and ran off! And she's still injured! I need to find her as soon as I can!' _**"Naomi, hang on, I'm coming to…" **Before she could finish, she felt something hard hit her in the back of her head. Her vision quickly blurred, and she tumbled forward into darkness.

* * *

Naomi groaned as she regained consciousness, her head throbbing. She slowly rose herself up to a sitting position, as she tried to shake the cobwebs from her head.

"**Ohhh, man, that hurt," **Naomi muttered, before suddenly realizing that Seiko was nowhere to be seen. **"Oh, crap, that's right! She ran away when we saw…" **She looked back at where the two corpses were and gasped. The corner that once held the pulverized body of Mayu, and then the bodies of both Packer and Mayu was… empty.

"**What?" **Naomi exclaimed. She stood up, still a little wobbly, and walked over to the spot. There was no trace of blood whatsoever, indicating that there were no bodies there in the first place.

"**Does that mean… that it changed again? Was Packer able to prevent Mayu's death from happening?" **Naomi said, now full of new hope. If that was the case, it could mean that both Packer and Mayu were alive, but there was no way to be sure, although there were no bodies to support the alternative. Even if someone had moved them, there would be traces of blood leading from the spot, and there was none to be found. After taking this into account, Naomi realized she had to find Seiko and relay the news to her. She ran as fast as her injured ankle could take her down the hallway.

After searching for Seiko for several minutes, she found herself on the third floor once again. She looked toward the girl's lavatories.

"**She has to be in here. This is the only place left I haven't looked," **Naomi muttered to herself. **"Seiko? Are you in here?"**

She walked into the bathroom. A creaking sound was emanating from the room.

'_What's that sound?' _Naomi thought. **"Seiko, are you alright?"**

As she approached the bathroom stalls, she noticed that one of them was slightly open, and something was swaying back and forth in the stall. The hairs on the back of Naomi's neck stood straight up. She was fearful of what she might find, but she had to satisfy her curiosity. She walked up to the stall and slowly opened the door…

**"…No…"**

A body was hanging from one of the posts sitting horizontal above the stall, a noose fitted tightly around the person's neck. All life seemed to be drained from the swaying body. Naomi's eyes popped out of her head upon recognizing who it was.

"_**SEIKO?!" **_Naomi screamed. **"**_**NOOOOO!"**_ She dropped to her knees, wrapping her arms around herself as she began sobbing. _**"Why, why, WHY?! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS?!"**_

Suddenly, she heard a gurgling sound, and her eyes shot up in a flash. She gasped as she saw Seiko struggling with the rope around her neck.

"_**NA…OM…I…" **_Seiko choked out.

'_Oh, my God, she's still alive!' _Naomi thought fervently. **"Hang on, Seiko! I'll save you!"**

She grabbed at the rope that was tied tightly around Seiko's neck. She struggled as she tried to find a way to loosen the rope. **"Damn it, how do you get this thing to loosen up?!" **she shouted in frustration, tears quickly filling her eyes. Seiko was wildly thrashing about, trying desperately to get oxygen into her lungs.

'_Crap, if I pull on the rope, it'll only tighten around Seiko's neck!' _Naomi quickly tried to think of another plan to rescue Seiko. _'If I'm gonna prevent her from suffocating, I need to give the rope around her neck some slack, and the way to do that… is to lift the body upwards!'_

Now knowing what she needed to do, Naomi quickly wrapped her arms around Seiko's waist, and tried to lift her up a little higher to allow her to breathe.

"**Come on, Seiko! Stay with me! Breathe, damn it, breathe!" **Naomi screamed.

It seemed to be working, but then, Naomi's injured ankle gave out at the worst possible time, causing her to lose her grip on Seiko. She dropped down to one knee and was suddenly kicked in the side of the head by one of Seiko's flailing feet, knocking Naomi onto her back.

Naomi sat up and rubbed her head, but quickly shook it off as she looked up with a gasp. Seiko was thrashing about with reckless abandon, her hands taking the noose around her neck in a death grip, trying anyway she could to loosen the pressure around her throat. Tears were spilling from her eyes, and her fingers were bleeding from being cut by the old threads of the rope. She was at the edge of death, and Naomi knew it.

"**NO! Hang on, Seiko! Stay with me!" **Naomi shouted. _'I need to find something to use as a platform for her to stand on!' _She quickly looked around the bathroom and noticed a metal bucket sitting in the corner next to the door. _'Ah, that bucket might work!' _She quickly ran over to it, ignoring the pain in her injured ankle as she bent down and picked it up. It was filled with a disgusting liquid, but she was quick to splash its contents onto the ground. She ran back over to the stall. **"Seiko, I've found something you can use to stand on! Hold on, I'm com…"**

She stopped in her tracks as she looked into the stall, her eyes widening to the size of baseballs.

Seiko had stopped struggling. Her arms were limp by her side, her fingers covered in cuts and blood. She was completely lifeless.

"**Seiko… please, give me a reaction!" **Naomi shouted.

She gasped in horror as she looked up at Seiko. Her eyes were bloodshot and full of tears, she was drooling from her mouth, but the most telling and frightening aspect of all… she had completely voided her bowels.

'_T-T-That sort of thing only happens when…'_

Tears began to cloud Naomi's vision, her grip on the rusted metal bucket beginning to loosen. It fell from her grasp, clanging as it hit the ground. Denial began to take over her mind and body, denial over the truth that was now lying in front of her…

Seiko was dead.

"_**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

Naomi screamed louder than she ever had in her life, as Seiko's lifeless body continued to swing back and forth. Her eyes were squeezed tightly together as tears streamed down her face like a waterfall. Her head was pounding worse than she had ever experienced in her life. Her breathing became quicker and quicker until she found herself hyperventilating. Her knees buckled, and she fell to the floor, sobbing loudly.

"_**WHY?! WHY WOULD YOU HANG YOURSELF?! DID PACKER REALLY MEAN THAT MUCH TO YOU?! THAT WHEN YOU SAW HIS BODY, YOU JUST COULDN'T BEAR TO BE WITHOUT HIM?!" **_she screamed. _**"You were smiling and laughing all this time… Didn't you say that you wanted to be together… forever? Didn't you say… we'd get out of this place… together?"**_

Her body began to shake violently, as a sharp pain pierced her heart, a pain known as regret. She had a chance to save her, and she failed… failed to save her in time. And now, she realized in horror, she was all alone.

"_**Don't leave me all by myself!" **_Naomi sobbed, the pain in her heart reaching a boiling point.

"_**SEIKOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

Unbeknownst to Naomi, three child spirits were sitting in the corner, silently snickering at Naomi's suffering. They could only imagine what her reaction would be if she found out the truth… After watching a moment longer, they phased into the walls of the restroom.

Naomi continued to sob uncontrollably, unsure of what to do now, even though there was really no point now. All hope had been lost.

"**What am I gonna tell Yuu-Chan?"**she sobbed, but gasped as another realization came to her mind.

"**If he's indeed still alive… what am I gonna tell Packer…?"**

* * *

**Author's Note: **(sigh) Wow. o_O I'm gonna be honest. The last part of this chapter was not easy to write. So many feels… :(

As far as my upload schedule goes, I'm gonna try to have a chapter uploaded every Sunday morning, no guarantees, though. Things are starting to slow down a bit as far as my job goes, though, so I'll have a little more time to devote to this story, and based on some of the reactions I've gotten, it's given me a lot of motivation. Thanks to all of you, and I'll see you when the next chapter is uploaded. ;)


	10. Chapter 10: A Knight of Regret

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note:** Like the previous chapter, this is going to contain some powerful moments, so you better have your feels ready. I know I did, and I'm the author of this story. XD

* * *

_**CHAPTER 10: A KNIGHT OF REGRET**_

Yui gasped as she heard a scream echo from outside the classroom. She didn't know where it was coming from, but she was certain she knew who it was.

'_That scream just now… was Nakashima's, wasn't it? So other members of the class are here as well,' _she thought. _'Sounds like she's in trouble, and it worries me. I mustn't let anything happen to my students. I should go and see if I can find her…'_

She walked back over to Ayumi and Yoshiki. Ayumi was sitting on the ground with her back against the teacher's podium. Her breathing was ragged, almost on the brink of hyperventilating. Yui kneeled down in front of Ayumi, grasping her shoulders.

"**Shinozaki-san, it's all right. Please, calm down, or you'll hyperventilate," **Yui said worriedly.

"**But… you heard it too. Outside, her voice…" **Ayumi gasped, still breathing heavily and shivering. Yui sighed.

'_If only we had a paper bag she could breathe into…' _**"It probably wasn't a voice. Maybe it was just the building settling after the earthquake," **Yui replied, although she didn't exactly believe it herself. **"But I'll go outside and check to see what it really was. I'll be back soon."**

But as soon as she turned to leave, Ayumi's head shot up, tears in her eyes. **"No, Yui-sensei, wait! Let us go with you!" **she shouted.

"**Shinozaki-san…" **Yui whispered. _'Oh, no, even Shinozaki's worried. Even though I'd like to stay with them, something could happen to Nakashima. What should I do…?'_

"**It's okay, Yui-sensei," **Yoshiki interjected. **"I'll watch Shinozaki while you're gone. Just be careful, eh?"**

"**Kishinuma-kun…" **Yui gasped. **"Okay, I'll leave her with you for a while. I'll go see what that sound was."**

"**No, Yui-sensei, don't!" **Ayumi sobbed. Yoshiki and Yui looked up at each other and sighed.

"**Shinozaki, it'll be alright. I'll be back in a jiffy," **Yui said, trying to calm Ayumi down.

"**But Yui-sensei…" **Ayumi cried. Yui could only shake her head. _'Man, she's really worried. Maybe if I gave her something to calm her nerves… Ah, maybe this'll work!' _She reached into her jacket pocket and brought out what looked to be a crystal. She took it and placed it into Ayumi's hand.

"**Huh? What's this?" **Ayumi asked.

"**It's a power stone," **Yui explained. **"I kept it close to me all this time, but in order for you to recover quickly, I'll give it to you for safe keeping."**

Ayumi examined the stone in her hand. **"It's beautiful…" **she admired.

"**So stay here and rest. I'll be back soon. I promise," **Yui said. Ayumi looked up, unshed tears in her eyes.

"**Okay…" **Ayumi finally gave in. Yui sighed in relief.

"**Yui-sensei, please be careful," **Yoshiki said.

"**I will," **Yui responded. She gave them one last wave, and then slid the door to the classroom open and walked out into the hallway.

As she looked down the darkened hallway, a faint breeze seemed to blow from the direction she was facing, causing her to shiver involuntarily. She pulled out a small pocket flashlight and turned it on, illuminating the room a few feet in front of her.

"**All right, I need to find Nakashima fast!" **Yui said to herself. Little did she know as she walked down the hallway that she was being watched by someone… or something…

As she continued down the hall, she came across a massive hole in the floor, preventing further exploration.

'_Crap, where do I go now?'_

She looked across the room and noticed that there were a set of double doors leading from a classroom marked '3-A'. She looked at the doors on her side and saw that the sign above them read the same thing: 3-A.

"**If I pass through this classroom, I'll be able to make it to the other side...," **she said.

She entered the classroom and walked over to where the other set of double doors were. But just as she reached out to grab the handle, she noticed that the cabinet next to her was starting to move. It was filled with knives and other various sharp utensils. Suddenly, the cabinet tilted and began to fall over… with Yui directly in its path!

"_**KYAAAAA!"**_

She screamed as the cabinet slammed down on top of her, pinning her underneath it. Her right arm as trapped underneath her, and she could feel a searing pain in it.

"_**Oh, God. I'm trapped!" **_she yelled.

"_**Ah, Sensei…"**_

An eerie voice sounded above her. She tilted her head up as best as she could and gasped. Standing over her was a spirit. From what she could tell, it was a boy, dressed in a suit and tie. He had medium length hair that ran down the side of his head. He tilted his head at her and smiled.

"_**Aren't you with your students in the classroom?" **_the spirit asked. _**"He he he, thanks to Sensei, who came out alone. I could meet you. I'm so happy…"**_

Yui groaned as pain shot up and down her body. **"W-Who are you, and why did you attack me?" **she asked.

"_**I am a revenant of this school. I died here… some time ago. But this conversation is not about me. It's about you, and more importantly, it's about a student you're searching for."**_

Yui gasped in surprise. **"W-What do you mean?" **she inquired.

"_**You must've been searching for one of your students, yes? I heard a girl's voice. But the thing is, you can't see her, nor can you find her, so it's a waste of energy to try and do so."**_

"**But why can't I see her?" **Yui asked.

"_**This old school is filled with many dimensions that result in a manifold sealed space, so even if you've heard your cute student's little cries, we won't be able to tell if it occurred in this dimension or another."**_

"**B-But… but that's not possible…" **Yui stuttered out. The revenant laughed at her answer.

"_**Something like that might sound unbelievable to Sensei, but inside Heavenly Host Elementary, anything is possible. It's a pity… the child that Sensei's searching for… will be tortured to death by the spirits of this school! However hard you look, you'll never find her!"**_

The spirit held his sides as his laughter became harder to hold in. Yui closed her eyes tightly, trying to blot out the tortuous laughter the ghost was emanating.

"**Even if this place is supernatural, I won't let it stop me. I will rescue my children and send them home in one piece!" **Yui shouted.

The revenant smirked at her. She felt the weight of the cabinet increase tenfold, and she screamed in pain as it began to crush her.

"_**AAAAAAAAAAGHHH!"**_

"_**Who are you trying to fool?!" **_the revenant shouted. _**"A Sensei would never believe in such things! Your only concern is fulfilling your role as a Sensei! You don't care about your students!"**_

Yui gasped as she felt sharp pain all over her back. She looked down at herself and gasped. The knives from the cabinet had impaled her in various places all over her back.

"_**Sensei, you're like that too, right?" **_the revenant asked, stepping onto the cabinet. _**"You are only concerned for your own well-being, just like all the others!"**_

He applied his weight to the cabinet, forcing the knives to go deeper into Yui's back, causing her to scream in agony. Blood began to pool around her body, her own blood. The revenant snickered as he knelt down and ran his finger through some of the crimson liquid.

"_**If we continue like this, Sensei will die. Do you want me to save you?"**_

Yui looked up at him as best as she could, tears in her eyes from the overwhelming pain.

"_**If it is your wish, you can exchange your student's life with your own. You find them a burden, right? So all you have to do is say the word, and I'll spare your life."**_

'_No…' _Yui thought fervently.

"_**And don't lie to me, Sensei. It'd be best to tell the truth. Your students will either die of hunger or commit suicide due to sadness... or be killed by things like ME. I'm sure they won't think of you when they die."**_

Tears began to stream down Yui's face as she was now faced with this difficult decision. She had to either sacrifice her life… or the lives of her students.

"_**Go ahead. Say those words and I'll spare you. No one else will hear what you have to say."**_

Yui was silent for a moment, and then, she opened her mouth to speak.

"**Please…" **she began.

"_**HAH! I KNEW IT! I KNEW THAT SENSEI COULDN'T BE TRUSTED!" **_the revenant laughed, but was stopped dead in his tracks by Yui's next words.

"**Please, spare my students. Do what you want with me, but I beg you, please, don't harm them!" **she shouted. The revenant stared at her, an incredulous look on his face.

"_**A bit silly to be acting strong, aren't we?"**_

"**No, it's not acting," **Yui replied. **"I-I really look up to those I've taught, even if you do find it hard to believe. I don't know how your Sensei treated you, but not all Sensei are what you believe. So… do what you wish to me, but please, don't kill my students…"**

Blood pooled around her mouth as her tears continued to fall. The revenant stared down at her in disbelief.

"_**Under such circumstances, you still protect your students. Such a flawless self-sacrificial attitude. You are a model teacher. If my teacher was like you, then maybe, things would be different…"**_

Yui gasped as she suddenly felt the atmosphere grow lighter, and with a flick of his wrist, the revenant telekinetically lifted the cabinet off of Yui.

"_**You really are a good person…"**_

As she began to pick herself up painfully, she looked up at him and smiled.

"**Thank you… for understanding," **she said gratefully.

But then, the revenant's face grew angry once again.

"_**You think you can fool me?!"**_

"**What?" **Yui exclaimed in surprise. In one swift motion, the revenant had knocked the cabinet back down on Yui, the knives stabbing her back once again. She screamed in pain.

"_**Did you think you could've gotten my sympathy like that? You didn't have to lie! Do you think I know nothing?!"**_

The revenant placed his foot on top of the cabinet once again, causing Yui to gasp in horror.

"_**There isn't a Sensei alive that would 'think about their students'! It has always been like that! ALWAYS!"**_

With a growl, he pressed sown on the cabinet with all of his might. The pain Yui was experiencing began to grow unbearable.

"_**NO… DON'T… STOP… PLEASE STOP! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" **_she screamed in agony.

* * *

Another earthquake shook the room, and Yoshiki protected Ayumi with his own body from falling debris. When the quake finally stopped, Yoshiki sighed in relief. But then, Ayumi suddenly stood up, a blank look on her face.

"**Shinozaki?" **Yoshiki questioned.

"**We have to find Yui-sensei," **Ayumi said matter-of-factly. Yoshiki arched an eyebrow.

"**You okay? Yui-sensei said to stay here until she comes back," **he replied.

"**No! We need to find her!" **Ayumi sobbed.

"**Shinozaki…" **Yoshiki whispered. _'Well, she seems to have recovered a bit from her episode, so trying to find Yui-sensei might be a good idea…' _**"You're right. She's taking way too long, so we'll go out and look for her. But if you start to feel unwell in anyway, we'll come back."**

"**Okay," **Ayumi agreed.

"**Hmmm, Yui-sensei might come back while we're gone… so let's leave a message," **Yoshiki suggested. **"Did you bring any paper and a pen?"**

"**I have a pen, but no paper," **Ayumi replied.

"**Then we'll write on this podium," **Yoshiki said.

The message read, _'Shishido Sensei, we have set out to look for you. If we missed each other, please stay here and we'll be back soon. Shinozaki, Kishinuma._

"**There. Let's go," **Yoshiki said as he finished writing the message, handing the pen back to Ayumi. He stepped toward the door and opened it, and the two of them stepped out into the dark hallway.

"**Shinozaki, do you happen to have a candle?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**I sure do," **Ayumi beamed, pulling out one for her and one for Yoshiki. She struck a match and lit the wick on both of the candles. The hallway was illuminated with their light.

"**All right. Let's find the others," **Yoshiki said as they walked down the hallway.

* * *

A flash of light appeared outside of the infirmary as Packer rematerialized in the new closed space. He hit the ground and rolled, coming back to his feet and spinning around in a circle, looking for any sign of trouble. Seeing that he was all alone, he glanced up at the sign hanging above the door to his left. It was marked 'Infirmary'. Realizing where he was, he turned around and looked down the hallway, and sighed with relief when he saw that the wall where he had seen Mayu's body was completely clean.

'_Great. I've arrived before it happens. Now the question is, how do I prevent it from happening at all?' _he thought to himself.

Just then, he heard a small giggle coming from the infirmary. As quietly as he could, he stepped over to the entrance of the infirmary and peer in. He gasped silently as he noticed that Mayu was sitting on one of the infirmary beds, but she wasn't alone. Standing in front of her were two child spirits, but they seemed to be having a friendly conversation.

'_I wonder if I should head in and get her out of there…' _Packer thought, when suddenly, his Future Sight activated. His eyes widened as the image filled his thoughts…

* * *

_He was standing out in the hallway, when the ghost children make their appearance with Mayu, smashing the doors of the infirmary. Smiling evilly, the children grasp one of Mayu's legs, and with superhuman strength, threw Mayu down the hall._

"_**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" **__Mayu screamed._

_Bracing himself, Packer caught Mayu in his arms, but he underestimated just how strong their throw was. He was knocked backward, along with Mayu, and smashed against the wall full speed. He gasped as a searing pain erupted in his lower body. He looked down. Mayu was safe in his arms, but the impact had severed his body in half at the torso. Crimson liquid ran down his legs like a waterfall, as he fell to his knees, spitting blood out of his mouth. He fell forward onto the ground, his body finally splitting in half._

_He could faintly hear Mayu's scream as his consciousness began to leave him._

"_**Packer! NO!" **__she screamed._

_The last thing he heard before he died was the sound of something solid smashing into a human skull. His vision went black…_

* * *

Packer gasped as the Future Sight ended, the image fresh in his mind.

'_So if I try to save her now, it would only result in my death AND Mayu's. Maybe I should come back later, when I find Ayumi and Yoshiki. Maybe they'll know what to do…'_

He certainly didn't like the idea of leaving Mayu in there with those ghost children, especially knowing what they were capable of, but for the moment, they seemed to be friendly, and Packer hoped it stayed that way for a while until he could find Ayumi and Yoshiki.

He ran down the hall, back toward where he found Seiko and Naomi, when he suddenly heard a scream come from inside one of the classrooms. He froze outside of the classroom marked '3-A'.

'_I think that scream came from in here…' _he thought.

* * *

Yui screamed as the revenant pushed down on the cabinet with all of his might.

"_**HAH! Sounds like you're in a lot of pain. You want to stop pretending to be brave? It's only gonna get you killed!"**_

"**Please, no more…" **Yui gasped painfully. She was beginning to lose consciousness.

"_**Don't worry, Sensei. I'll convey your dying message when I kill your students! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"**_

Suddenly, the doors behind him exploded, sending bits of wood and shrapnel all over the classroom. The revenant looked back with a start, and his eyes widened. Yui looked up as best as she could and let out a small gasp.

Standing just outside the doorway was a green-haired boy, with his arms pointed at the doorway, having just launched a fireball at the doors.

"**P-Packer…?" **Yui muttered. The revenant arched an eyebrow.

"_**So, this must be one of your students, then? I wonder if he bleeds as easily as you do."**_

"**I'm more than just an ordinary student, jackweed," **Packer spat out, causing the revenant to look at the green-haired young man in surprise.

"_**Well, aren't you confident. We'll see if you have that same level of confidence when I rip your tongue out!"**_

"**Don't be so sure," **Packer retorted, powering up an attack. _**"THUNDERBOLT!"**_

Packer raised an arm and released a bolt of lightning at the revenant, who was totally unprepared for his opponent's attack. The lightning caused him to scream as the bolt hit his chest, but it didn't seem to affect him all that much. He looked up with rage in his eyes, only to be met with a flaming fist to the jaw.

"_**PYRO PUNCH!"**_

The revenant was knocked backwards by the force of the blow, causing him to land on his back several yards away. He sat up and looked at Packer, a stunned look on his face.

"_**But… how… how did you do that? Being ethereal, I shouldn't be able to feel any kind of blow corporeal beings throw at me!"**_

"**Like I said before, I'm no ordinary human. The elements I wield seem to have some effect on the spirits of this place. So unlike other humans, I'm more than a match for any pissed off ghost that wants to take me on!" **Packer growled, causing the revenant to backpedal a bit. **"And I will not let you do any more harm to Yui-sensei, so I suggest you back off, unless you want another super powered knuckle sandwich!"**

"**Packer…" **Yui murmured softly. Packer looked down and quickly began to move the cabinet off of her. He gasped, noticing the knives and various instruments sticking in her back.

"**Hang on, Yui-sensei. I'll get these knives out, but first, we need to do something about the bleeding," **he said. Reaching into his uniform, he brought out a medium-sized first aid kid. He opened the lid and quickly scrimmaged around for a hypodermic needle filled with a viscous liquid. The casing was marked 'Hemostat'. He quickly injected the fluid into Yui's back.

"**There. That should stop the bleeding for the time being," **he said, as he began to remove the knives from Yui's back. Yui moaned in pain as he extracted each of the knives, all while he kept one eye on the revenant in case he did something fishy. The revenant was just standing there with his arms crossed, watching Packer help Yui.

After the last knife was extracted, he dug into the first aid kit for a small blood pack.

"**Yui-sensei, what is your blood type?" **Packer asked.

"**T-Type O," **Yui stammered, on the verge of passing out. Packer quickly grabbed the appropriate blood pack, quickly inserted a tube into the pack, and gently inserted the needle into Yui's arm. After a couple of minutes, the lightheadedness she had been feeling began to fade, and she became more aware of her surroundings.

"**All right, lay still, Yui-sensei. I'm gonna heal the cuts on your back," **Packer said. Yui looked up at him in confusion.

"**B-But… how can you do that?" **she asked.

"**Like this," **Packer replied, holding up his right hand. **"Light of the heavens, lend me your healing aura. **_**FIRST AID!"**_

Suddenly, an orb of green light appeared in his hand. He gently moved the orb around, bathing its soothing green light on Yui's back, causing the wounds to slowly heal and close. Yui sighed as she felt relief from the pain in her back.

After a few minutes, all of the wounds on Yui's back were closed. Yui pulled herself up to her knees and looked at Packer in astonishment.

"**Amazing!" **Yui exclaimed. Packer just shrugged.

"**I try to be…" **he replied with a small smile.

Yui smiled, but then let out a yelp of pain, clutching her right arm.

"**What's wrong?" **Packer asked worriedly.

"**I think my arm is busted…" **Yui gasped.

Packer gently took hold of Yui's arm and rolled her jacket sleeve up. They could see a small bulge in her right forearm.

"**Yeah, I'd say it's broken," **Packer muttered. **"I'm gonna have to reset the bone back into place."**

Yui certainly didn't like to hear that, but she nodded and gritted her teeth. **"Go ahead." **She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the pain. Packer took a deep breath, placing his thumbs on the bulge in Yui's arm. In one swift motion, he pressed down, snapping the bone back into place. Yui screamed as the sharp pained coursed up and down her arm, as she buried her face into Packer's shoulder, tears streaming down her face. Packer let out a sigh.

"**Well, at least that's done and over with," **Packer said. He looked around and spotted a piece of wood that was about the right size to use as a splint, and grabbed a roll of bandages out of the med kit. He braced the wood against Yui's arm and began meticulously wrapping the bandages tightly around her arm. Once that was done, he looked around and noticed what appeared to be the remains of a tablecloth. He walked over and tore a sizable piece of cloth out. He returned to where Yui was sitting and began fashioning a sling out of the tablecloth. Yui looked up at him, a grateful smile on her lips.

The revenant had been watching the entire time, amazed at how much attentive Packer was to Yui's injuries, and the fact that Yui trusted him to reset her broken arm caused a light to go off in his head that maybe, just maybe, she had been telling the truth all along.

Packer placed the sling around Yui's neck and gently placed her injured arm into it. He made a small adjustment to it to make sure that her arm would stay securely in place to prevent any further injury, and then helped her to her feet.

"**Thank you, Packer," **Yui said gratefully.

"**Anytime, Yui-sensei," **Packer replied.

"_**I guess I was wrong…"**_

Yui and Packer glanced over at the revenant, whose face was now filled with regret.

"_**It appears that Sensei has great influence over her students, and Sensei was willing to trust in her student to repair an injury. Maybe you are what you say you are…"**_

Packer and Yui glanced at each other with confused looks.

"_**So you're… really, truly concerned about the safety of your students, are you?"**_

"**Of course I am!" **Yui replied.

"_**But you're just their instructor, no? You have no familial bond with any of them. You're not their mother."**_

"**But they're my children!" **Yui shouted. The revenant gasped in surprise at her outburst. **"I think I speak for every single one of us at Kisaragi Academy when I say that we love our children. We care about them just as their parents do. Never underestimate a teacher." **Packer looked over at her with a smile. The revenant remained silent as her words resonated with him.

"**Now, answer me this! Your little rant earlier suggested that more of my students are here than the two I came with and the one I heard earlier…" **Yui said. Packer looked at her oddly. **"Is it true? Were the others brought here as well?"**

"_**It is. Numerous corporeal entities joined us in these closed spaces, all at the same time. Counting you two, I sensed the arrival of ten people."**_

"**In other words, everyone that was in the room when it collapsed," **Packer said.

"**Come on, we need to get back to Kishinuma and Shinozaki, pronto!" **Yui exclaimed.

"**Right. Lead the way," **Packer replied.

Yui and Packer walked back in the direction Yui had originally come from. The revenant looked at them with a sad, yet hopeful look.

"_**That boy in green… he may be our only hope to end our torment…"**_

As they were heading back to the classroom, Packer explained how he was able to use the power of the elements to his advantage, and why he had come to Japan in the first place. Needless to say, Yui was astonished by Packer's story.

"**So, you're a Knight of the Covenant, eh? That's quite the appropriate title for a handsome devil like you," **Yui grinned.

"**Yeah, yeah. So, earlier, you said you heard one of the students from our group. Do you know who it is?" **Packer asked.

"**It sounded like a scream, and I'm almost positive it was Nakashima," **Yui replied. Upon hearing that, Packer stopped dead in his tracks.

"**Naomi? But I just left her and Seiko a short while ago. Did something happen to them?" **Packer asked worriedly.

"**I don't know, but I hope that's not the case," **Yui replied. **"By the way, if you were in a different closed space, how were you able to come to this one?"**

"**A girl named Naho was able to allow me to bridge the gap between the dimensions," **Packer explained. **"She seems to possess supernatural powers like I do, although they don't seem to use the power of the elements like mine do."**

"**I see," **Yui said.

They arrived at classroom 1-A, only to find it completely empty.

"**What? Where are they? Where are Shinozaki and Kishinuma?!" **Yui gasped, her voice laced with panic. Packer walked over to the teacher's podium and noticed something written on it.

"**Yui-sensei, take a look at this," **Packer said.

Yui walked over and looked at the podium, gasping in surprise as she read the message left behind by Ayumi and Yoshiki.

"**Looks like they went out to look for you," **Packer said.

"**Damn, I must've been gone too long, although that revenant had something to do with that," **Yui replied. **"Come on, Packer. We need to find them."**

As they walked back out into the hallway to begin their search for Yoshiki and Ayumi, Yui reflected on the anger the revenant subjected her to before Packer's arrival.

"**That spirit was trapped here, just like us," **Yui said. **"Succumbing to unbearable feelings of anger and hatred, one victim drawn to harm another… It's not just people trapped in this space, but their sadness and torment as well. It's got nowhere to go, so it just hangs in these halls. We shouldn't be here. We have to get them all back home."**

"**Exactly right," **Packer agreed.

As they arrived on the third floor, they heard a scream coming from further down the hallway. Yui gasped.

"**That was Shinozaki!" **Yui exclaimed.

Before he could respond, Packer gasped as his Future Sight activated. His eyes widened as the image filled his mind, causing Yui to look at him with concern.

"**Packer, what's wrong?" **Yui asked worriedly. Packer gasped again as he came out of Future Sight. His eyes widened again as he realized what he had seen.

"**Shit, Ayumi and Yoshiki are in trouble!" **Packer exclaimed.

"**What do we do?" **Yui asked.

"**Leave that to me," **Packer replied. He began building up his supernatural energy in his body, causing him to glow in a bright white light. He growled as the energy flowed through his body, while Yui watched in amazement. **"Follow the trail I leave behind!" **he shouted.

"**Huh?" **Yui muttered in confusion.

"**Just watch," **Packer replied. _**"SHINING SPRINT!"**_

Releasing the energy he had built up in his body, his body was suddenly covered in a bright white light, and he exploded into a sprint, running at super speed down the hallway, leaving a spectral trail behind him. Yui's mouth dropped open as Packer disappeared down the hallway.

"**Whoa…" **she gasped in amazement as she began to run down the hall after him, following the spectral trail he left behind.

* * *

Ayumi gasped as the pain in her head reached a fever pitch. Yoshiki ran up to her, concerned for her well-being.

"**What's wrong, Shinozaki?" **Yoshiki asked worriedly. Ayumi grasped her head, the pain becoming almost unbearable.

"**My head… my head's going to burst!" **she screamed.

"**Are you alright?!" **Yoshiki yelled.

"**I can't be here! If I'm here… I'll really… no… NO!" **Ayumi began spitting out random nonsense, the migraine reaching its peak of intensity, causing Ayumi to scream in pain once more. Tears filled her eyes and began to stream down her face.

"**Hey, get ahold of yourself! Get a grip already!" **Yoshiki shouted. **"What the hell happened to you?"**

Suddenly, Yoshiki heard the sound of footsteps behind them. Turning around, he gasped in horror. Walking toward them was the spirit of a little boy, with blood dripping out of his mouth. He looked up at them with evil merriment and a grin on his face.

"**His face… It's the same one from the newspaper!" **Yoshiki exclaimed.

"**Kishinuma-kun!" **Ayumi screamed painfully. **"Y-You absolutely can't make eye contact with him! Don't look into his eyes!"**

"**I got it!" **Yoshiki yelled, but as he turned around, he noticed the boy was suddenly standing right in front of him, almost as if he was peering into Yoshiki's soul. It seemed he had teleported halfway across the hall, and his sudden appearance in front of him caused Yoshiki to scream in surprise and fall back on his rear. The boy also seemed to glow with a deep purple light. He raised a pair of scissors with malicious intent.

"**Stay away! Stay away from me!" **Yoshiki yelled in fear. The boy smiled, pointing his bloody pair of scissors at the blonde-haired young man.

"_**Onii-chan or Onee-chan… Which wants to die first?"**_

He glanced over at Ayumi, who was still clutching her head in pain, but was now aware that the boy had set his gaze on her.

"_**Which one, I wonder…?"**_

"**Kishinuma-kun…!" **Ayumi gasped in fear. The boy quickly moved over to her and placed the tip of his scissors to her neck, causing her eyes to widen in horror.

"_**Will it be Onee-chan who dies first?"**_

"**Save me!" **Ayumi gasped.

"_**Bye-bye, Onee-chan…" **_The ghost child raised his arm to plunge the scissors into Ayumi's neck.

"_**STOP IT, YOU LITTLE BASTARD!" **_Yoshiki shouted vehemently, causing the ghost child to stop his motion. He slowly turned to look at Yoshiki, an evil smile on his face.

"_**Well then, I'll kill YOU first instead!"**_

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared down the hallway, and it seemed to be getting closer and closer. Then, all three of them heard someone shout.

"_**THUNDERBOLT!"**_

A bolt of lightning slammed into the child's back, causing him to scream in pain.

'_What the hell was that?' _Yoshiki thought. At that moment, a shadow covered in a bright light flashed past them, leaving a spectral trail behind it. It jumped, placed both feet on the wall at the end of the hallway, and rebounded off of it, jumping into the air back toward Ayumi and the child spirit. The shadow reared back, its fist blazing with electricity.

"_**THUNDERPUNCH!"**_

The electrically-charged fist slammed into the ghost child's jaw full force, knocking him off of Ayumi and onto the ground, causing him to lose his scissors in the process. The boy sat up and looked at the shadow with an angry look. The light faded from its body, revealing a green-haired young man in similarly colored clothing. Yoshiki gasped in surprise.

"**Packer?!" **he exclaimed.

Packer glared at the ghost child, his fists still pulsing with electricity.

"**Hey, you little bastard, how about picking on someone who CAN fight back?" **he shouted, getting into a fighting stance. The boy growled, causing the scissors to telekinetically levitate and fall back into his hand.

"_**Does Onii-chan really want to die that badly?"**_

"**You're in way over your head, sonny Jim," **Packer retorted. **"I'm no ordinary 'Onii-chan'."**

The ghost child screamed, leaping toward Packer with the scissors pointed at him. Packer dodged out of the way and tossed a glass dagger in the spirit's direction, immediately detonating as it hit the floor in front of him, covering the spirit in a wall of flame. Not stopping his attack, Packer charged at the evil ghost.

"_**PYRO PUNCH!"**_

Packer charged his fist with fire and aimed at the child spirit, but the ghost saw it coming and dodged out of the way. Packer's fist slammed into the wall where the spirit had been. Before he could react, the spirit had leaped at him once again. Packer once again dodged, but not before getting caught across the face slightly with the ghost's scissors. He wiped a bit of blood from the fresh cut before facing off with the dangerous child spirit once again.

The ghost child growled and leaped at Packer again, but this time, Packer was ready for it as he powered up an attack.

"_**ICE BEAM!"**_

His arms extended toward the ghost child, and he released a powerful beam as cold as the arctic at his ethereal foe. The beam was blue-white in color, and everyone in the room could feel its ice cold power. The beam struck its target in the chest, instantaneously covering the spirit in a block of ice. Packer dodged as the block hit the wall, shattering on impact. The ghost shook its head to get rid of the cobwebs, only to be struck by a fireball, setting it ablaze.

"_**IMMOLATION!"**_

Packer had released his X-shaped fireball at the spirit, distracting it for a moment. Just then, in that split second, he noticed what appeared to be a bottle of water of some kind above the ghost child. Someone had apparently tossed it from down the hall. Thinking fast, and knowing what could be in the bottle, Packer launched a glass dagger at the brittle glass bottle, shattering it on impact and spilling its contents onto the ghost spirit. The child screamed as it was bathed in the water, and in a flash, he disappeared, leaving just Packer, Yoshiki, and Ayumi in the hallway.

With the child spirit gone, the migraine that Ayumi had been suffering from vanished, and she collapsed to the ground, her strength completely drained. Yoshiki quickly rushed over to her side, picking her up in his arms.

"**Shinozaki, are you alright?!" **he asked worriedly. She looked up at him with tired blue eyes.

"**K-Kishinuma-kun…" **she said weakly.

Packer walked over to where his friends were sitting.

"**You guys okay?" **Packer asked.

"**Yeah, I think so," **Yoshiki responded. **"But, Packer, how did you do all that? Throwing lightning and fireballs and running like the wind?! How is that possible?!"**

"**Well, it's a long story, Yoshiki…" **Packer began.

"**Packer, Kishinuma-kun, Shinozaki-san!"**

All three turned to see Yui running up to them.

"**Thank goodness you're all okay!" **she exclaimed.

"**Yui-sensei, you're alright, as well!" **Yoshiki exclaimed. Ayumi looked up and noticed Yui's arm in a sling.

"**Yui-sensei, your arm…" **she began worriedly.

"**Don't worry about it. Packer found me and fixed it up… sort of," **Yui said with a chuckle.

"**Packer, thank you for helping Yui-sensei," **Ayumi said gratefully.

"**No problem. It's my job to get you all out of here in one piece, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do, but first… Guess I got some 'splaining to do, eh?" **Packer said.

He spent the next several minutes explaining who he really was and why he was here. Much like the others before, Yoshiki and Ayumi were fascinated with Packer's story.

"**So, in order to prevent the galaxy from entering a paradox, you have to get all nine of us out alive," **Ayumi said.

"**Sounds farfetched, I know. What gets me is why your lives are tied to such an event. It makes no sense to me, but I guess that's the way fate works sometimes," **Packer said.

"**So, it seems you also have a strong spiritual sense, don't you?"**

All four of them turned to see Naho standing a few feet away.

"**Naho! So you're the one who tossed that bottle of holy water," **Packer realized. Naho nodded in response.

"**Packer, you know Naho Saenoki?" **Ayumi asked.

"**Yeah, she helped me get here to this closed space," **Packer responded.

"**But why is she also here?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**I've already died here," **Naho replied, causing everyone except Packer to gasp. **"I came to this place to find someone important to me, and I happened to run across Packer in my travels, and decided to give him a hand."**

Naho turned around and walked back down the hallway. Packer turned to Ayumi.

"**Ayumi, what do you know about her?" **he asked.

"**She's a high school spirit medium. She ran a blog that eventually became infamous. It was from that blog that I discovered the Sachiko Ever After charm," **Ayumi explained.

"**So she might know something about finding a way out of here," **Yui said.

"**It's a long shot, but it's the best lead we've got right now. Come on. I think she went into the library," **Packer replied.

* * *

Inside the library, Naho was busy studying one of the many books lying around. Nervously, Ayumi walked up to Naho.

"**Um, Naho-san…" **Ayumi began. Naho closed the book and looked back at Ayumi.

"**What is it?" **Naho asked.

"**I've always been a fan of your blog," **Ayumi said with a smile.

"**Look out, y'all. I think Shinozaki's about to go all fangirl on us," **Yoshiki said with a laugh, causing Ayumi to frown at him.

"**Thank you," **Naho replied.

"**Once you posted about the Sachiko Ever After charm, you stopped posting and everyone got worried. Who would've known something like this would've happened…"** Ayumi trailed off.

"**Well, at least we now know why she disappeared," **Packer surmised.

"**Hey, you said you came here to look for someone, right?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**Yes," **Naho replied.

"**You came on your own? What I mean is, if there's a way to come here, then there's a way to go back, right?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**Maybe," **Naho replied. **"Before I died here, I investigated ways to escape. It seems that the closed spaces formed in Heavenly Host, due to each of the four child spirits."**

"**The same children on that newspaper we found," **Yoshiki said.

"**Yes," **Naho replied. **"I didn't think they'd have the ability to control the spaces, but those four can. In order to escape this place, you must appease each of the four child spirits."**

"**Appease them, huh? How are we supposed to do that?" **Packer asked.

"**You must find the murderer and make them confess," **Naho explained. **"After all, the murderer is inside this school as well."**

Ayumi, Yoshiki, and Yui gasped, while Packer narrowed his eyes as he realized who Naho was talking about.

"**You mean that bastard Yoshikazu," **Packer growled.

"**Precisely," **Naho answered.

"**You know who Yoshikazu is, Packer?" **Yui asked.

"**Yeah, I do," **Packer replied, pointing to the bandage above his eye. **"He already left his mark on me. He's a very tall man and wields a giant sledgehammer. It took every bit of power I had in me to fight him, and he just kept coming. He seemed to show no remorse whatsoever. I don't know how we can get someone like that to confess to anything."**

"**There might be an easier way," **Naho spoke up. **"While I was pursuing him, I found a lead… this."**

She holds out what appears to be some type of doll. Its clothes were of a plaid color, and its eyes and mouth made Ayumi feel uneasy.

"**This is what he carried around with him," **Naho explained. Suddenly, the doll seemed to speak.

'_I'm sorry,' _it said.

"**Well, that's not creepy at all," **Packer muttered sarcastically.

"**This is his voice," **Naho said. **"If the child spirits hear this, they may finally be appeased and rest in peace after all these years. If that were to happen, this school would disappear and you and your friends would be saved."**

"**Do you think it would work?" **Yui asked. Naho just shrugged.

"**In theory. At any rate, it's still the best lead I've come across since I've been here," **Naho said. **"Hopefully, it will work, because if it doesn't, you'll have to find some way to bring Yoshikazu to the child spirits to appease them that way."**

"**Based on my prior experience, I'd say that's next to impossible, so maybe we should focus on trying the doll first," **Packer said.

"**Agreed, but where should we begin searching? Those child spirits could be…" **Ayumi suddenly stopped mid-sentence as she felt something in the room. It seemed to be leading her out into the hallway, as she started to walk in that direction.

"**Shinozaki, where are you going?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**Follow me," **Ayumi replied. Yoshiki, Naho, Yui and Packer followed her out of the library.

Ayumi eventually came to the 3rd floor girl's restroom. Yoshiki sighed.

"**If you had to go that bad, you didn't have to ask us for permission," **he moaned.

"**There's something in here," **Ayumi replied as she walked in. Packer hesitated for a split second, and then walked in after her, followed by Yui, Naho and Yoshiki. They noticed Ayumi staring blankly at a spot on the ground.

"**What the hell…?" **Packer muttered.

On the ground, seemingly burned into the floor, was a shadow, staining the floor like a black tar.

**"Well, that's something you don't see everyday..." **Yoshiki muttered.

"**Someone died here…" **Ayumi muttered. Packer glanced over at her. Tears were shining in her eyes as she fell to her knees.

**"It seems she can feel the person's presence through this shadow," **Naho explained. "**As well as what they felt before they died."**

"**But who died here?" **Packer wondered, looking up at the bathroom stall. There was another shadow against the back wall, and the remains of a noose were hanging on the crossbeam above the stall. Ayumi whimpered as the memories hit her full force.

"**This person was suffering… in so much pain… it was no use struggling. She couldn't even call for help!" **Ayumi exclaimed, tears streaming down her face. Packer knelt in front of her and grasped her shoulders.

"**Ayumi, can you tell who it was?" **Packer asked.

"**No… all I could tell was that when I felt it, it was like I was freezing cold, except my throat was so hot, it felt like it was on fire," **Ayumi explained.** "Then I voided my bowels, and everything went dark. No matter how hard I struggled, my arms and legs just wouldn't move. I wanted to yell out, but I had no voice. I was scared… and the pain was so excruciating…"**

She let out another sob, while Packer glanced up at the others.

"**So… someone must've hung themselves here," **Packer surmised.

"**Yeah, but who could it have been?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**Packer, your Future Sight could give you the answer," **Naho suggested.

"**How? My Future Sight activates on its own," **Packer responded.

"**Touch the shadow. You may be able to see what happened in this room with your own eyes," **Naho said. Packer looked back at the shadow and sighed.

"**Well, I guess it's worth a shot," **he said. Tentatively, he reached over and just barely touched the shadow with the tips of his fingers. Instantly, there was a reaction. A sudden pain filled Packer's head, and he stumbled backward, grasping his head with his hands.

"**Packer?" **Yui asked worriedly.

"**Packer-kun," **Ayumi exclaimed.

Packer's moans faded as the pain eventually subsided. He opened his eyes and gasped. His vision had been altered somehow. He could still see Ayumi, Yoshiki, Yui and Naho clearly, but the rest of the room was a blurred mess. He squinted his eyes, trying to sharpen his vision.

"**What do you see, Packer?" **Naho asked.

"**I can still see you guys clearly, but the rest is just… fuzzy. I can't make out anything," **Packer replied. **"Wait a second…"**

He spotted what appeared to be a person, sitting on their knees in front of the bathroom stall, right where the shadow was. However, the image was so blurry, he couldn't make out what who it was.

"**I can see someone else in the room, but I still can't make out who it is. Everything is still really blurry," **Packer said.

"**Would some reading glasses do the trick?" **Yui asked.

"**Maybe. Anybody got a spare pair they could lend me?" **Packer asked.

Ayumi dug into her skirt pocket and brought out her pair of reading glasses.

"**Here, Packer. You can use mine," **she said, handing them to him. Packer took them and slipped them over his eyes. He looked up, his vision clearing a bit, and what he saw made him take a step back.

"**Packer, what's wrong?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**It's… its Naomi. She's the one on her knees in front of the bathroom stall. But that could only mean…"**

The words suddenly caught in his throat. His mouth went dry, and his eyes grew as big as saucers. His panicked gazed shot upward, toward the top of the stall. His breathing became ragged as he saw the rope swinging back and forth on the crossbeam. Fear began to squeeze his heart.

"**No…"**

Ayumi, Yoshiki, and Yui exchanged worried looks, and Naho arched an eyebrow at Packer's behavior.

"**No…"**

Fearing the worst, he suddenly ran to the entrance of the bathroom stall.

"**No no no no **_**NO NO NO!"**_

Packer looked into the stall… and his heart was completely shattered. Hanging from the noose was a familiar brown haired girl with two familiar curls on the side of her head. It could only be…

"_**Seiko…" **_Packer choked out.

Everyone gasped, including Naho. Ayumi's hands shot to her mouth as she tried to hold back sob, while Yui's eyes were already filling with tears. Yoshiki's mouth had dropped open, a stunned expression on his face.

"**Packer… please tell me you're joking," **Yoshiki stuttered out.

Packer's body language, however, indicated that it was anything but a joke. Packer collapsed to his knees, the horrible truth revealed to him. Tears streamed down his face as a sob wracked his body. In that one singular moment, he lost all of his self-control and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"_**SEIKOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

* * *

**Author's Note: **Well, things just got interesting, eh? Well, get ready, because the next chapter is when the shit really hits the fan. ;)


	11. Chapter 11: Supernatural Reunion

DISCLAIMER: CORPSE PARTY AND ITS CHARACTERS BELONG TO TEAM GRISGRIS/GRINDHOUSE. _**THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER, PACKER, BELONGS TO ME.**_

**Author's Note: **My story has officially hit 2,500 views. Thanks to all of you that have taken time out of your busy schedules (trust me, I know what that's like XD) to read my story. I really appreciate it.

On that note, I'd like to address a particular user…

Trollface 2000, I have only one word to describe someone like you: Classless. Absolutely classless. Your review was downright vile and disgusting. If you didn't like the story that much, then why couldn't you just say so in a respectful manner instead of resorting to insults and personal attacks to get your point across? Seriously, you need to grow up, son. An attitude like that will not get you very far in life. But whatever, it's none of my concern anymore since I've blocked and reported you. Next time you review someone's work, how about you show some class instead of being an ass. ;[

The same goes for anyone else who posts a similar review. If you resort to personal attacks in your review, you _**WILL BE BLOCKED AND REPORTED, NO EXCEPTIONS**_. I have zero tolerance for that kind of crap. ;[

The bottom line is, positive reviews are always welcome (obviously), but if you want to leave negative feedback, be like TheMysteriouswatcher and put something constructive and tangible together that I can actually use. Admittedly, I was a little insulted at first with his first couple of reviews, but after reading through the original first chapter again, I realized that he was pretty much correct, so I completely rewrote the first chapter and scaled my OC back… a lot. As long as you're respectful with your negative feedback, I'm always all ears for any suggestions. And for God's sake, use some common sense when reviewing. That's all I really ask of you.

I apologize for going on a longwinded rant, but it was something I had to get off of my chest. Again, thank you all for reading, and without further ado, here's Chapter 11. It has a bit of a plot twist that all of you might not have seen coming... ;)

* * *

_**CHAPTER 11: SUPERNATURAL REUNION**_

Naomi stumbled away from the girl's restroom, not being able to handle the sight of Seiko's body any longer. Her eyes were red and swollen and still fresh with tears, and sobs still wracked her body from time to time. As she came to the stairwell, her cell phone suddenly rang, causing her to jump. She tentatively opened it up and put it to her ear.

"**Um… hello?" **she greeted.

'_Help me… help me…' _An eerie voice came from the speaker. Just seconds later, a new voice came through the speaker, a woman's voice.

"**Naomi? Are you there?! Answer me, please!"**

Naomi gasped. She'd recognize that voice anywhere.

"**Mom…?" Mom! Mom, it's me! I'm in real trouble!" **Naomi screamed into the phone.

"**Naomi! Please, just let me hear your voice!" **Her mother's sobs could be heard through the speaker, causing her to gasp as she realized that her mother couldn't hear her. **"Please… just say something! I'm your mom, Naomi! God, please… don't let anything have happened to her!" **And then, the eerie voice returned.

'_Help me… help me… help me… help me…'_

Yelling in fright, Naomi threw the phone down the stairwell. It landed with a clank at the bottom of the stairs. After she took a moment to regain her composure, she looked down at her cellphone sitting on the ground next to the stairs.

'_My cell phone… does have Seiko's number stored in it… and everybody else's, too…' _Naomi thought. As she walked down the stairs to retrieve it, she suddenly lost her footing and fell down the last of the stairs, landing hard on the floor. A loud 'crack' could be heard from her leg. As she tried to stand up, pain shot through her injured leg.

"**Oh, God… it hurts!" **Naomi screamed. _'That sound… was that… my leg?!' _Her stomach growled, and she gagged as she emptied her stomach's contents, vomiting all over the floor. Just then, she heard what sounded like…

'_Pull yourself together! You're a tough cookie, Naomi. This isn't like you!'_

Was… Seiko talking to her… from beyond the grave? The lights in the stairwell flickered, and then went out completely.

"**I'm… I'm not 'tough' at all!" **Naomi yelled. **"Seiko… Seeeiiikoo… I can't take any more of this! Somebody, please, help me!"**

Tears spilled from her eyes and down her face as she began to sob uncontrollably. Eventually, her emotions reached the breaking point, as she began wailing in the stairwell, sobbing at the top of her lungs.

"_**MOOOMMY!"**_

Her sobs continued to echo throughout the stairwell and the adjoining hallways.

"_**SATOSHIIII!"**_

Naomi sat there in the stairwell, crying for several minutes. As she began to quiet down, she suddenly heard a scream echo from the third floor.

"_**SEIKOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

Naomi gasped as she recognized who it was. She turned and looked back up the stairs, her eyes widening in shock.

"**Oh, no! That must mean… Packer knows…"**

* * *

Packer sat on his knees, sobs wracking his body and tears streaming down his face. Regret had hit him full force, regret that he had left Seiko behind, and in essence, traded Mayu's life for Seiko's. Of course, there was also the possibility that he might not be able to save Mayu's life either, and that thought only caused him more anguish.

"**Shinohara's gone? But it can't be!" **Ayumi exclaimed, tears forming in her eyes as well. Yui was on the verge of breaking down as well. Yoshiki could only shake his head in sadness. Naho seemed indifferent, although she sympathized with the green-haired young man.

"**I'm sorry, Packer. If I had the power to bring all three of you to this space, I would've done so," **Naho explained. **"But regrettably, my powers are not as strong as yours are, so I was only able to bring you here."**

Naho's apology and explanation did nothing to soothe the burning pain in Packer's heart. His sadness and depression suddenly turned into anger, and he screamed in a fury that was very unlike him. In a fit of rage, he grabbed hold of the bathroom stall door and ripped it off its hinges, smashing it into the ground. Not stopping there, his fist blazed with fire and he punched a hole in the wall of the bathroom stall. Still in a fit of rage, he charged over to the window and smashed it with his fire-covered fist, the glass shattering and covering the floor.

"**Packer, calm down, please!" **Yui begged, trying to talk some sense into the enraged Knight. Packer braced his hands on the window sill, trying to regain control of his emotions. He growled as the burning anger, frustration, sadness, and depression mixed together inside him, sending his emotions into a state of flux.

"**It's not enough for me to know that the galaxy is doomed, but to lose the woman I love as well? …..**_**GODDAMN IT!" **_Packer yelled.

Everyone present gasped at that.

"**Packer… are you saying… you love Shinohara?" **Yoshiki asked, stunned. Packer remained silent for a few moments before answering.

"**Yes…" **Packer whispered. **"…and I never got a chance to tell her. She meant the world to me… and this Godforsaken place took her from me!"**

Ayumi's heart twisted painfully**. **She wished there was something she could do to ease his pain, but she was stumped. She had never dealt with this kind of situation before, and she was unsure of what to do. Just then, she heard Yoshiki gasp. She turned to look at him.

"**What's wrong?" **Ayumi asked.

"**What the hell is that?!" **Yoshiki gasped. Ayumi, Yui, and Naho looked to where he was pointing and collectively gasped as well. A purplish mist, similar to the one that had been emitting from the crazed students Packer had fought earlier, was now surrounding Packer himself, causing his body to emit a dark purplish aura. Packer turned to face them, and what the group saw struck fear deep in their hearts. Packer's green eyes were blazing like fire, and the whites of his eyes were now blood red, and they were narrowed in a twisted rage the likes of which they had never seen before.

"**Oh, my God! It's the Darkening. He's being possessed by the Darkening!" **Naho shouted. She was now legitimately afraid for her own well-being, despite the fact she was already dead. It was one thing for the Darkening to claim an ordinary human, but a trained Knight of the Covenant with supernatural powers?

Ayumi's breathing started to become ragged, almost to the point of hyperventilation. If Packer had succumbed to the Darkening, their lives were now in serious jeopardy. She had to do something to reach him, to see if he was still the same Packer they knew.

"**Packer? It's me, Ayumi! Listen, I know you're upset, but…" **she began.

"_**SHUT UP!" **_Packer yelled. His voice had deepened considerably, and had a vicious growl to it, causing Ayumi to gasp and back up in fear, especially when his enraged gaze fell upon her. _**"This place may have taken Seiko from me… but you… YOU!" **_He pointed a finger at Ayumi. _**"YOU were the one that decided that we do that stupid friendship ritual without knowing the consequences of what might happen! YOU are the reason we are in this Godforsaken place to begin with!"**_

Yoshiki knew that he was no match for Packer, but he wasn't going to stand by and let Packer put Ayumi down like that.

"**Listen to yourself, Packer!" **Yoshiki yelled back. **"You've gone completely postal! Shinozaki had no idea that this was gonna happen! Nobody did! It's not gonna do us any good to blame anybody for us! We need to work together so we can all get the hell out of here!"**

"_**NO, KISHINUMA!" **_Packer raged. Yoshiki took a step back when Packer called him by his last name. _**"You don't understand a Goddamn thing! Even if we make it out, it won't matter, because unless all nine of you get out alive, the galaxy will come to an end! And because Seiko is dead, there's no way that can happen! The galaxy is doomed…" **_His body pulsed with dark energy as he summoned a new attack. _**"…and you're gonna pay with your life, AYUMI SHINOZAKI!" **_Ayumi gasped in horror as Packer made his proclamation. Yoshiki stepped in front of Ayumi with the intent of protecting her.

"_**So, you think you can protect your woman, Kishinuma? How cute." **_Packer growled as he unleashed the dark energy that he had built up within him.

"_**DARK OUTBURST!"**_

The dark energy suddenly exploded outward from his body, causing a wall of dark energy to shoot out in all directions. The energy wave struck Ayumi, Yoshiki, Yui, and Naho, knocking them all to the ground.

"_**BLOODY TELEKINESIS!"**_

While the others were stunned briefly from the Outburst attack, Packer had powered up another dark elemental telekinetic spell, causing Ayumi to be pulled towards him. As Yoshiki tried to get up, Packer powered up another attack.

"_**BLACK ICE SPREADER!"**_

Packer fired a sphere of frost at the ground, flash freezing the moisture in the air, causing a wall of ice to form, effectively separating Ayumi and Packer from the rest of the group. Yoshiki beat his fists against the icy wall to no avail.

"**Packer, stop!" **he yelled.

Ayumi was lying on her back, staring up at Packer like a deer caught in the headlights. She was totally frozen, with nowhere to go. Packer's red eyes narrowed as he extracted a glass dagger from his uniform. He twirled it in his hand before readying it to plunge into Ayumi's chest.

"_**PREPARE TO DIE!" **_Packer yelled as he brought the dagger down. Ayumi screamed as the engine of her death came roaring at her.

"_**STOOOOOOOOOOP!" **_Yoshiki screamed.

Ayumi looked away and closed her eyes, bracing for the inevitable pain that would hit her chest. But it never happened. She instead heard the sound of what seemed to be a struggle. It couldn't be Yoshiki, because the ice wall was still in place. She looked back up and gasped.

Packer's right hand was on the handle of the dagger and pressing down, while his left hand was gripping the blade, trying to stop it from going any further. Ayumi looked up into his face and gasped again. Packer's right side was engulfed in black light, and his right eye was still the same blood red color, but now, his left side was bathed in white light, and his left eye had returned to its original color. The group watched in amazement as Packer struggled with his inner demons.

"**What the hell's going on?" **Yoshiki asked.

"**The real Packer has reemerged! He's trying to fight off the Darkening invading his consciousness!" **Naho replied.

Packer groaned as he tried to regain control of his body, but the Darkening was relentless, continuing to press the dagger closer and closer to Ayumi's neck. The blade began to cut into Packer's fingers, causing his blood to run down the blade of the dagger and begin dripping onto Ayumi's neck, causing her to whimper in fear. Packer continued to pull up on the dagger, but it seemed to be no use. The Darkening was just too strong.

"_**Just give up, boy! You belong to ME now!"**_

"**No! I'll never give in to you!" **Packer yelled. The tip of the blade was now lightly pressing against Ayumi's neck, causing her to whimper a little louder. Packer had almost lost all hope when suddenly…

'_Come on, Packer! You can't give up now!' _Packer gasped. That sounded like Seiko's voice! _'Are you willing to let this thing beat you, or are you the hero I know you are? I know you can do it, Packer! Believe in yourself!'_

Packer suddenly found himself with renewed vigor, and he lifted the blade off of Ayumi's neck just a little bit, but the Darkening was persistent.

"_**You will never win against true evil, boy!"**_

"_**Yes… I… CAN!" **_Packer yelled vehemently. He clutched the blade in a death grip so strong, he cracked the tempered glass. He screamed as he overpowered the evil possessing his body, finally breaking free of the Darkening's grip. The dark energy was thrown backward against the wall, turning into a viscous black liquid that ran down onto the floor.

Packer collapsed down onto one knee, still hovering over Ayumi. His breathing was heavy, and sweat covered his face. Ayumi's fear was receding as she saw that Packer had regained control.

"**Packer, are you okay? Are you… yourself again?" **Ayumi asked.

"**Yeah… I think so…" **Packer replied weakly. He forced himself back onto his feet and held out a hand to Ayumi. She took it, and he pulled her up to her feet. He willed the ice wall to vanish, allowing Yoshiki, Yui, and Naho to rejoin them. **"What the hell happened? I was trying to calm myself down, and all of sudden, I felt this cold air just hit me like a ton of bricks, and I blacked out momentarily."**

"**You were possessed by the Darkening, Packer. But I've never seen anyone overpower it before. That was incredible," **Naho complimented.

Packer smiled at her, before suddenly realizing something.

"**I heard… Seiko's voice. She was encouraging me, telling me never to give up. If it wasn't for her…" **he trailed off as he couldn't complete the sentence. He knew how close he came to killing Ayumi, and it frightened him. What if the Darkening tried to invade his body again? Would he be able to fight it off?

Ayumi gave Packer a small smile, before looking past him and gasping. **"Packer, behind you!" **she screamed.

Packer spun around. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, a dark shadow was rising up from the pool of dark liquid. A pair of crimson eyes appeared on the misty figure, and they stared at Packer with evil intent. Packer's eyes narrowed as well.

'_Damn it, this thing just won't go away! I don't know if I can stop this thing, but I can at least slow it down and allow the others to escape,' _Packer thought. He brought his hands together, gathering fire within them. **"You guys get ready to run. I'm gonna try to slow this thing down a bit!" **Packer yelled to the others.

"**We're ready," **Yoshiki replied.

The fireball in Packer's hands reached full strength, and he aimed it at the dark cloud that had once invaded his body.

"_**SACRED FIRE!"**_

The fireball launched from his hands at the cloud. At that instant, Ayumi thought she saw a blue light flash by. She gasped as an ethereal figure ran up to Packer and seemed to place its hands on Packer's arms. As it did so, its ethereal essence ran through Packer's arms and into the fireball that he had just released. The blue energy sent the fiery sphere into a spin, turning it into a completely different attack.

Packer gasped as the fireball changed in front of him, wondering what just happened. The fireball changed color, from red and orange to a ghostly blue as it sped toward the dark essence at the end of the room. The fireball struck the cloud full force, causing it to scream in pain. Then, to the amazement of everyone in the room, the cloud completely dissipated, leaving no trace of its existence.

Packer's jaw fell open, still stunned by what just happened, and he still had no idea why his fireball had changed like that. Even Naho was finding it hard to believe.

"**Packer, how did you do that?" **she asked. Packer turned and looked at her, looking just as confused as everyone else.

"**I have no idea, but whatever it was, it completely destroyed what was left of that dark cloud, so I'm not complaining," **Packer replied. Ayumi scratched her chin as she recalled something.

"**Right before Packer threw that fireball, I thought I saw a spirit run up to him and grab him by the arms," **she said. **"It seemed to inject its essence into the fireball, enhancing its capability."**

"**A spirit, huh? Who could it have been?" **Yoshiki asked.

"_**I'm glad you asked, Kishinuma-kun."**_

Everyone gasped as someone's voice echoed throughout the room. Packer recognized the voice almost instantly.

"**Seiko, is it you?" **Packer asked.

Suddenly, a blue mist appeared in the center of the room, causing everyone to take a step back. It started to take on a human shape… a familiar human shape. Soon, her image could now be seen by everyone, right down to her curled hair. Packer's eyes widened in shock.

"**Hey, Packer. Nice to see ya again," **Seiko said with a smile. Packer's eyes brimmed with tears as he hung his head in shame.

"**So, it is true. You're no longer…" **Packer began painfully.

"…**alive, I know," **Seiko finished.

"**What the hell happened, Shinohara?" **Yoshiki asked. **"Why did you hang yourself?!"**

"**I… I don't know…" **Seiko replied. Packer's head shot up.

"**What do you mean, you don't know?" **Packer asked curiously.

"**I can't remember exactly why I hanged myself, or if I did. The only thing I can remember is the searing pain I felt in my neck, and my body was just… so cold," **Seiko explained. **"In my dying moments, I could see Naomi trying to save me, but it was too late."**

Seiko coughed a bit, and brought a hand up to her neck, which had a deep rope mark on it.

"**She must be in great pain," **Naho observed. **"The pain she felt when she died."**

"**Damn it! I should've been there," **Packer mumbled. **"I should've been able to save you."**

"**You didn't have a choice, Packer, and you know it," **Seiko replied. **"You had to come here… to this space… if you were gonna save Suzume."**

"**Wait, what?" **Yui spoke up. **"Suzumoto is here in this space as well?"**

"**Yes, and her life is in serious danger. We need to hurry and find her, ASAP!" **Seiko said.

"**I have an idea on that. Come on!" **Packer yelled, instinctively grabbing Seiko's hand. For some reason, her ethereal essence seemed to be… absorbed into Packer's body. Packer immediately noticed this and instantly let go of Seiko's hand. Her hand reformed a few seconds later. **"Okay, that was weird," **he remarked.

"**Interesting," **Naho said. **"It seems that Shinohara's spirit can merge with your body, Packer. Based on what we saw earlier, it might be advantageous to allow her spirit to merge with you."**

"**I-I don't know about that…" **Packer cautioned.

"**I think it might be alright. Her spirit can dwell within you, and you will maintain control of your body, since she is much more cooperative than the Darkening was and ever will be," **Naho explained.

"**Not only that, but when my hand merged with you briefly, the cold feeling in my hand disappeared. I think if I merge with you, all of the pain I felt at the moment of death will disappear completely," **Seiko replied.

Packer gasped at that. A way to keep his girlfriend from suffering from the pain of death? By simply letting her inhabit his body? It was too good an opportunity to pass up, and he felt like he owed her a lot, not to mention that it was a chance at redemption.

"**Very well, let's do it," **Packer said.

"**Now, there's some risks involved with this," **Naho warned. **"If the two of you remain in conjunction for too long, Shinohara's spirit will be permanently merged with Packer's body, so you will have to disconnect every once in a while to prevent that from happening. Also, she'll be able to feel whatever you feel, so if you cut yourself, she'll feel the same pain. And because she'll be a part of you, she can read your thoughts, so you can talk to each other mentally if you so desire. This could also mean that she'll be able to see what you see when Future Sight is activated, but this is just a theory.**

Packer arched an eyebrow at the last sentence.

**"****Lastly, you saw what happened when she injected her ethereal essence into your fireball. It enhanced its power, so much so that it destroyed the dark essence that once inhabited you.** **You might even learn some new spells in the process. I imagine your other attacks will be enhanced as well, but with increased power comes a bigger drain on your mana, since more power requires more energy, so be careful if you use any enhanced attacks," **Naho finished.

"**Well, that was certainly a mouthful," **Seiko said with a laugh.

"**Despite all of these risks, do you still want to allow Shinohara to merge with you?" **Naho asked. Packer didn't even need to think twice about it.

"**Let's do it," **Packer said.

Seiko nodded, and placed her hands on Packer's shoulders. Almost immediately, her spirit began to merge with Packer, her ethereal essence being absorbed by his body. When the process was completed, Packer's body was now glowing with a soft blue light. He let out a small sigh.

"**I feel… stronger, physically and mentally," **Packer said. **"It feels amazing!"**

"**Is Shinohara still able to hear and talk to us?" **Ayumi asked.

"_**Indeed I can, Ayumi-Chan," **_came Seiko's voice, which seemed to echo throughout the room.

"**Incredible," **Yoshiki remarked.

"_**You have no idea," **_Seiko replied.

"**What do you mean?" **Packer asked, confused.

"_**The pain is all gone, and it just feels amazing to be inside you," **_Seiko replied.

"**Heh, I'll bet," **Packer agreed. He then heard Seiko chuckle.

"_**Heh heh heh, you know, since I now know what it's like to be inside of you, I can only wonder what it would be like for YOU to be inside of ME**_**," **she said with a mischievous giggle. Packer's eyes widened as he instantly recognized what her statement meant, and his face turned a deep shade of crimson. Ayumi and Yoshiki couldn't hold back chuckling, while Yui could only shake her head in amusement. Even Naho had broken into a small grin.

"**Damn it, Seiko, was that really necessary?" **Packer complained.

"_**Yes, it was," **_Seiko replied with a grin. Packer could only sigh and roll his eyes.

'_This is gonna be really awkward,' _Packer thought.

"_**I heard that, Packer," **_Seiko laughed. Packer realized his mistake and face palmed.

"**Right, I forgot. You can read my thoughts while inside of me," **Packer said with embarrassment. He shook his head and looked up at the rest of the group. **"All right, we've wasted enough time. We need to head back to the infirmary and find Mayu, pronto!"**

The others agreed, and together, they rushed out of the restroom, the infirmary their next destination.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I've decided I'm gonna take a little break from writing, since a certain aforementioned user pretty much killed my motivation to continue writing. I'll probably come back after a week or two to continue the story, but for now, I need a break. Don't fret, though. Once all of this blows over, the story will continue as planned. Thank you all for understanding.


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